Mobile Suit Gundam The Second Century Part 1
by Buried Alien
Summary: Twenty years after the One Year War, the last survivor of the Zabi Family seeks to redeem her family's name. Assisting her is a fiery and beautiful young Newtype. Their tempestuous friendship, forged in battle, will change the world as a new century dawns
1. Chapter 1: ATHENA

MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE SECOND CENTURY (PART 1: PRELUDE 0099)

EPISODE 1: ATHENA

U.C. 0089….

Space Colony Side 3, the birthplace of Contolism and seat of government of the Archduchy of Zeon, is occupied by Earth Federation Forces mobile suits that have landed to seek out any hidden survivors of the Axis/Neo Zeon leadership. Regent Haman Karn is already dead, and the remaining Neo Zeon forces have congregated for a last stand around Zum Palace, royal residence for the Suzerain of Zeon.

The palace is already in shambles, its superstructure riddled by cannon fire. Inside, many Zeon military officers, civil officials, and domestic servants are scrambling to cover or trying to escape. Many more lie dead on the palace floor.

In the royal court, the remaining leaders of the Neo Zeon military have gathered: General Carloman Miguel, General Omar Damascus, General Adrian Reglas, General Lara Constantinas. The military leaders gather around a tiny figure: ten year old Princess Minerva Zabi, daughter of Prince Dozle Zabi and final surviving heir of the Zabi Royal Family that rules the Archduchy of Zeon. Also with them is Dory, the princess' nanny.

"Your majesty," General Miguel informs Minerva, "our space fleet has been defeated and the civil defense divisions of our space colonies are being overrun. We must evacuate."

Sadly, soberly, the young monarch replies to her loyal general, "This is the second time our nation's finest have been defeated by its enemies. Our people are Newtypes, the chosen people of humanity's future. Why can our people not triumph against the Earth-dwellers whose souls are bound by gravity?"

A moment of somber silence ensues. Resolved to spare her people the ravages of prolonged war, Princess Minerva turns to the military leaders under her command, "Issue the following declaration to all commanders of the Earth Federation Forces and AEUG immediately: Princess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon requests an immediate cessation of all hostilities. The House of Zabi is prepared to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the current conflict with the people of Earth and the spacenoids of AEUG."

General Damascus, a large, violent man, growls in protest, "Your highness, I beg you to reconsider! We must not surrender to those Earthbound tyrants! We must remain true to the cause of Zeon to the very end!"

Princess Minerva whirls angrily on General Damascus, "I am the leader of my people, General Damascus, and I have a responsibility to preserve their lives and welfare. Our military is broken. If we continue hostilities, more of my people will die!"

General Miguel, a calmer and more levelheaded man than his comrade Damascus, speaks out, "You heard her highness' command. Obey immediately, or face royal court martial!"

Angrily, Damascus salutes and departs to carry out his orders. The remaining Zeon officers other than General Miguel scramble to execute the princess' orders as well.

Dory turns to Princess Minerva, "Your highness, you're certain that you've made the correct decision?"

The princess looks at Dory sadly, "Even you're questioning me now?"

Dory reddens, "My apologies, your highness. I wouldn't dare."

Princess Minerva looks sadly upon her loyal domestic, "For all of our sakes, I pray that I've chosen wisely."

Suddenly, the ground begins to shake and the walls of the palace begin to crumble. The entire roof of the palace is then lifted off by an AEUG mobile suit. The piece of falling debris knocks Dory unconscious.

The dust settles to reveal a crimson RMS-099 Rick Dias mobile suit towering over the ruins of the royal court. The cockpit of mecha opens, and an AEUG officer in a crimson normalsuit leaps out.

Princess Minerva looks up from the ground, where General Miguel has shielded the princess with his body (Miguel is unhurt). Minerva's eyes light up in recognition and disbelief, "Colonel Char!"

Indeed, the officer who emerged from the Rick Dias mobile suit is none other than the infamous Colonel Char Aznable, the "Red Comet" of the Zeon forces during the One Year War of U.C. 0079. Later taking the identity of Captain Quattro Bageena of AEUG, Char has been missing in action and presumed dead for the past year following the final battle of the Gryps Conflict.

General Miguel recognizes Char as well, "Char Aznable," Miguel snarls, "Traitor! You were supposed to be dead! What is your purpose for coming here now?"

Char does not answer Miguel. Instead, with one quick maneuver, Char moves past Miguel and scoops up little Princess Minerva into his arms.

Miguel points his sidearm at Char, but will not fire as long as Char holds Princess Minerva. Royal guards finally make their way into the collapsed throne room, but it is too late. Char has already boarded the Rick Dias with Minerva and blasted away from the ruins of the palace.

A few remaining Zeon civil defense MS-14 Gelgoog and MS-09R Rick Dom mobile suits pursue Char's Rick Dias, but Miguel knows that they will never capture the Red Comet.

U.C. 0097

Eight years have passed since the final sighting of Princess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon.

Today is graduation day at the Earth Federation Forces military academy. Of the thousands of young men and women who enlisted in the academy for three years of intense, grueling physical and mental training, three hundred are gathered in front of Reville Hall today to receive their commissions as officers in the Earth Federation Forces.

General Bright Noah, the Federation's most decorated war hero of the past two decades, who was captain of the _White Base_ during the One Year War, the _Ahrgama_ during the Gryps Conflict and the First Neo Zeon War, and the leader of the Lond Bell Task Force during the Second Neo Zeon War , is issuing the graduates their commission diplomas and extending his congratulations.

After General Noah shakes hands with a 2Lt. Rory Hutchinson and a 2Lt. Lana Mugali, the highest ranking officer in the Earth Federation Forces summons another graduate, 2Lt. Athena Ibaz.

2Lt. Athena Ibaz, aged eighteen, is an exceptionally attractive young woman. With reddish blonde hair, long legs, and a regal, dignified bearing that belies her youth, 2Lt. Ibaz's appearance to accept her commission from General Noah draws a chorus of cheers from her fellow graduates and seniors officers. Athena is graduating at the top of her class – of every class in the history of the Federation's military academy! She has excelled in all phases of the academy's officer training program, and promises to be an exceptional officer for the Earth Federation Forces. Moreover, Athena is at the top of the list of twenty-six exceptional graduates who have earned positions into the Federal Forces' newly organized elite Special Operations Force. Athena has been assigned to the Centurion Team, under the command of One Year War veteran Captain Rick Tinne.

Later that evening, a lavish grand ball is held within Reville Hall to celebrate the achievements of the graduates and the launching of the Special Operations Forces. Athena, resplendent in her Federation officer's dress uniform, is approached by Colonel Peter Cairlay, a tall, thin, and somewhat sinister-looking man who is the Director of the Special Operations Force.

Col. Cairlay and Athena exchange a few pleasantries about how they look forward to working together. Suddenly, an aide approaches Col. Cairlay and whispers something into the colonel's ear. Cairlay's face pales in horror, and he quickly excuses himself from Athena's company and rushes towards General Noah's office. Athena looks at the departing Cairlay in a disturbed manner; something serious had obviously come up.

There is a knock on the door of General Noah's office. Col. Cairlay salutes and enters. The colonel finds General Noah sitting at his desk, rubbing his beard nervously. Cairlay can tell from the look on the general's face that the situation is extraordinarily grim.

"Sir?" ventures Cairlay after a moment of tense silence.

General Noah's gaze is withering in its intensity as he finally addresses the colonel, "Colonel Cairlay, approximately one hour ago, a task force of five unfriendly mobile suits raided the Anaheim Weapons Development Plant near Anman City and captured the Project G-100."

Cairlay responds with a deep sigh, "Any leads, sir?"

General Noah nods grimly, "One of our GM pilots managed to shoot down one of the enemy mobile suits: it was an AMS-119 Geara Doga. Intelligence personnel have confirmed that the pilot of the mecha was an agent of the Independent Spacenoid Republic Liberation Army."

Colonel Cairlay considers the information the general has revealed to him. The Independent Spacenoid Republic is an underground society of self-proclaimed freedom fighters whose objective is the restoration of the long obsolete Zeon Republic of Side 3. the I.S.R. was founded in U.C. 0094, the year after Char Aznable's failed attempt to create nuclear winter on Earth by dropping Axis Fortress on the planet, by Artasia Som Daikun.

Artasia Som Daikun, aged thirty-five, is the daughter of the late spacenoid pioneer and visionary Zeon Zum Daikun, founder and first Prime Minister of the Zeon Republic. Artasia's brother Casval Rem Daikun was the man who later became known as Char Aznable. During the One Year War, Artasia, under the name of Sayla Mass, actually served under then 1Lt. Bright Noah aboard the _White Base_. Sayla distinguished herself as a skilled and brave fighter and mobile suit pilot for the Federation, at times serving as substitute pilot in lieu of the famous Federation war hero Amuro Ray as the pilot of the original RX-78 Gundam. Sayla retired from the Federation military after the conclusion of the war, and after a rocky and ultimately failed relationship with Amuro Ray, she had completed her medical studies and spent the intervening years as one of the world's finest physicians. Sayla reclaimed her birth name of Artasia Daikun after the apparent deaths of both her brother Char and her onetime lover Amuro at the end of the Second Neo Zeon War in U.C. 0093. Sickened by decades of war seemingly without end, Artasia organized the I.S.R. in a bid to free the space colonies once and for all.

The I.S.R. rejects the violent imperialism of the Zabi Family's Archduchy of Zeon, but is committed to the liberation of Side 3 and all space colonies whose people desire to be free of the Earth Federation Government's hegemony. The Federation regards the I.S.R.L.A. as terrorists.

General Noah tells Colonel Cairlay, "Colonel, I believe we should summon the services of the Special Operations Forces."

Tactical Information Center, Green Noah Base: the 26 commanding officers of the Special Operations Forces team (A-Z) meet with Colonel Cairlay and General Manron Blackhead (Commander of Federal Space Forces) to discuss the current crisis.

General Blackhead opens the conference by asking the officers, "Ladies and gentleman, how much does each of you know about the Project G-100?"

Captain Donna Rever, leader of Tycho Team, answers, "Sir, we are all aware that the Project G-100 refers to a new Gundam mobile suit prototype that Anaheim Weapons R&D has been developing for the past five years…but no one outside of Federal High Command's inner circle knows any details about the project."

General Blackhead nods, "Yes. Project G-100 was initiated at the same time that the idea of creating the Special Operations Forces was proposed. It was to be the testbed for a new generation series of Gundam mobile suits suited for extraordinary operations the Special Forces would need to perform. The prototype G-100 was stolen, last night, ladies and gentlemen, by ISRLA terrorists."

There is a collective gasp among the Special Forces officers. The loss of the Project G-100 represents a grave security breach that could threaten the security of Earth and the Federation's space colonies. The Federal Forces' newest and most powerful WMD is in the hands of terrorists.

Captain Koichi Sato, the leader of Victory Team, speaks next, "Sir, we're prepared to retrieve the prototype."

Colonel Cairlay gestures for silence, and stares hard at the officers as he says, "People, you understand, or at least should understand, this situation as well as I do. If a large number of spacenoid civilians are killed, injured, or suffer property loss in a Federal Forces military operation against the ISRLA, anti-Federation sentiment will intensify throughout the colonies. It's already well known that the ISRLA has accumulated such overwhelming support at Side 3 that both the Federal Deliberative Assembly and the Federal High Command are considering it politically advisable to withdraw the occupation forces we've stationed there since 0089. Current intelligence indicates that ISRLA activities have spread to Side 5, Side 6, and Anman City. Blatant use of Federal military force against spacenoid civilians might galvanize all Cislunar colonies into rebellion against the Earth Federation Government. The last thing we need is another goddamn civil war with our own space colonies."

Captain Vladmir Arkov of Mercury Team asks, "Then what are our orders, sir?"

Cairlay lights a cigar, and blows out a ring of smoke before replying, "Captain Tinne?"

Captain Rick Tinne rises to his feet, "Sir!"

Cairlay fixes his eerie gaze on Tinne, handing him a Datachip, "Captain, this Datachip contains all relevant information that Federal Intelligence has been able to accumulate on Chad Barron, a key man in the ISRLA. If anyone knows anything about the location of the G-100 prototype, it would be him. The Centurion Team's orders are to track down Barron and bring him in for interrogation."

A few hours later, Captain Tinne and Athena are playing billiards in the C-Team's recreation room. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that Captain Tinne has been watching Athena play billiards; she has sunk so many consecutive balls into the table's pockets that the captain's cue stick hasn't touched the table yet in an hour.

As Athena sinks yet another ball into a pocket, Captain Tinne inserts the Datachip given to him by Colonel Cairlay into his Datapad, a nearly ubiquitous handheld personal computer device.

Captain Tinne reads aloud the data on the viewscreen for his executive officer's benefit, "Chad Barron. Age 45. Born on Side 3. Earned a doctorate degree from Zum University in Artificial Habitat Facilities Engineering in U.C. 0078. Served as a military specialist in the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon during the One Year War. During the 0080s, served as a military specialist for AEUG. Became Chief Foreman of Side 3's main nuclear fusion plant in 0090, and promoted to Director in 0095. Also became a founding member of ISR with Dr. Artasia Som Daikun and others, and soon worked his way into becoming one of the most important men in the ISRLA."

As Athena nonchalantly chalks her cue stick, she asks, "What's your plan, sir?"

Captain Tinne sighs, "Well, going in guns blazing with mobile suits is definitely out of the question. Making the Federal Forces look like a gang of armored fascist thugs is exactly what the ISR wants."

Athena sinks a red ball into a side pocket and says, "The ISRLA has always had the political upper hand against the Federation because it's successfully capitalized on the Earth government's greatest fear – spacenoid rebellion."

Tinne switches off his miniprocessor and prompts, "Then in response, we should…?"

Athena picks it up, "In response, we should do likewise – exploit the ISRLA's greatest fear against them."

Athena sinks the eight ball in the corner pocket with a dreadful finality.

Twelve hours later, the Centurion Team is at Side 3, Bunch 1: site of Zum City, the former capital of both the Zeon Republic and the Archduchy of Zeon. The once opulent capital city is now in shambles, occupied by a small force of Federal soldiers and MS pilots.

Zum City is now also the nominal "home" of the Independent Spacenoid Republic movement. These spacenoid freedom fighters ("terrorists" from the Federation's perspective) pass themselves off as Zum City's regular citizenry which, in fact, most of them are. The ISRLA launches constant clandestine, guerilla style assaults against the Federal Forces.

Around the ruins of the old Zeon Republic's Parliament Building, an angry crowd of demonstrators numbering into the tens of thousands carry signs and shout slogans such as, "Free Zeon!" "End Earth's Injustice Towards Spacenoids!" "Fight Earthist Oppression!" "Vive Contolism!" etc. Leading this assembly of protestors is the familiar Dr. Artasia Som Daikun, the woman once known as Sayla Mass.

Several kilometers south of the Zeon Parliament Building lies the colony's main nuclear fusion power plant. Chad Barron is the Director of Colony Energy Resources (and secretly, point man for the ISRLA's intelligence personnel). The main nuclear fusion plant for Zum City is not must a colony utilities facility; it is also a gathering place for members of the ISRLA. Here, anti-Federation rebels gather to discuss their plans, all done under the shadow of industrial work that maintains the colony's power supply. Hydrosuits (non combat mobile suits) enter and exit the plant en rout to various maintenance work around the about the colony.

Chad Barron, a thin, sinister looking man with a pencil moustache and greasy hair, is quietly discussing something with several other ISRLA members/ plant maintenance workers. Brownstone, an aide of Barron's, alerts him that Captain Rick Tinne and 2 Lt. Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Forces have come with a military warrant to investigate the power plant for suspected ISRLA activity.

Barron pales at the news. He had not anticipated the Federation discovering this secret stronghold, at least not so soon. He tells Brownstone, "Bring them here, but we must make sure they don't leave here alive to compromise us."

Brownstone invites Captain Tinne and Athena to enter the facility's main generator chamber. Barron greets the two Federal Forces officers with false cordiality.

Captain Tinne says gravely, "We're sorry to interrupt your work, Mr. Barron. We understand that supplying a space colony with power is a serious task that requires all of your time and attention, but our business here won't take long. Mr. Barron, thirty-six hours ago, ISRLA terrorists appropriated a piece of vital military property from Anaheim Weapons R&D. Our intelligence personnel indicated that Side 3 was a possible point of egress for the ISRLA, so we would like to…"

Barron cuts him off, "I understand, Captain. Very well, you have permission to search the premises.

Captain Tinne bows to Barron gallantly, "Thank you, sir. Lt. Ibaz?"

The captain and Athena begin an investigation of the grounds of the power plant, attentive for any indication of ISRLA activity. Athena spots a calculator-sized device on a nearby work station and hands it to Tinne.

Captain Tinne examines the device, then shows it to Barron, "Mr. Barron, is it your facility's standard practice to use MS combat data processors as part of its equipment?"

Standing to one side, Athena notices a cargo bay door nearby. Reaching out with her mind, Athena gets a vague impression of what lies beyond the metal door.

Athena makes a decision in that instant. _This is my opportunity. Time to act._

Athena subtly approaches Captain Tinne and quietly indicates to him the door that she had spotted. The captain, responding to his junior executive officer's prompting, approaches the door for a closer inspection.

The doors rip open with alarming suddenness! A hydrosuit blasts out and impales Captain Tinne with one of its extended utility arms.

The commanding officer of the Centurion Team confirmed dead, the HS swings around to finish Athena with a swipe of its metallic claw.

With a quick, deft, acrobatic maneuver, Athena leaps clear of the robotic talon, draws her sidearm, and fires a shot into the HS's cockpit canopy, striking its operator between the eyes. Athena swiftly opens the HS's shattered canopy, jettisons the body of its slain operator, and climbs into the cockpit seat.

Athena pulls the throttle of the HS, sending it careening into several ISRLA rebels who appeared with firearms after hearing the noise and commotion. Athena then sets the HS down next to the main fusion generator unit of the colony and puts the mecha's own fusion battery into overdrive.

Brownstone is about to fire a shot from his assault rifle at the HS when Barron knocks the weapon from his hands, "Brownstone, don't! That woman has the HS in overdrive! If you fire at it, it will start a chain reaction explosion that would wipe out this entire colony!"

Horrified, the rebels point their weapons away from the pirated HS.

"Thirty seconds to critical mass," an electronically synthesized voice announces from the HS.

Athena points her sidearm at Barron, "Mr. Barron, I want to know the location of Project G-100 immediately."

Barron stares at the overheating HS in horror. Sweat covers the man's skin, and his throat is as parched as the Sahara in summer, "You heartless bitch! Take that thing off overdrive now! If it explodes, over five million people will die!"

Athena looks at Barron coldly, "The location of the prototype…?"

The synthesized voice of the HS's computer continues its doomsday countdown, "Ten seconds to critical mass. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five…"

Barron's eyes bulge in terror, and he shouts hoarsely, "Ferrario! Ferrario's got it at Industria Colony!"

Athena brings her fist down quickly on the control that cancels the HS's overdrive mode. At that precise moment, armed Centurion Team personnel enter the chamber and begin to disarm the ISRLA rebels.

Pressing the muzzle of her pistol against Barron's forehead, Athena further inquires, "Vincent Ferrario? The high-tech weapons black marketer?"

Barron looks away bitterly, confirming Athena's suspicion.

Athena orders the C-Team to place Barron and his cohorts under arrest.

Athena turns to the gutted, bleeding corpse of Captain Rick Tinne, kneels before it, and solemnly closes the late Centurion Team commander's eyes.

The young members of the C-Team choke back tears. They had hardly gotten to know their commanding officer, and now he is dead.

Master Sergeant Karim Abdul Al-Said turns expectantly towards Athena, "Lieutenant? Ma'am, you're in charge now."

Athena nods grimly, pulls out a handkerchief that she usually lets hang stylishly from the front breast pocket of her uniform jacket, and wipes her hands with it.

Repocketing the handkerchief, Athena tells Sgt. Al-Said, "Bring these rebels back to headquarters for interrogation, sergeant."

The sergeant raises an eyebrow, "Will you be coming with us, ma'am?"

Athena shakes her head, "I'm leaving right away for Industria Colony."

Scarcely fifteen minutes later, Athena dons a Federal Forces' combat pilot normalsuit and boards an FF-X99 Core Fighter. The combat spacecraft blasts towards Industria Colony, its engine thrusters leaving behind a dramatic flash as it disappears into the field of stars.


	2. Chapter 2: JOLIE

EPISODE 2: JOLIE

Industria Colony is the 4th Bunch of Side 1. As its name suggests, Industria Colony was once a booming industrial center where raw materials from Earth or the moon were processed into the machinery that enabled space colonies to function. Since the completion of Side 1 decades ago, however, Industria Colony has fallen victim to neglect and disuse as industrial production moved to newer facilities.

Its boom years long behind it, Industria has become a sort of collecting point for material and human refuse. The material refuse includes broken, obsolete MS, spaceships, space colony machinery, etc. The human refuse includes many of the thugs, mercenaries, war criminals, and orphaned children that haven spawned by twenty years of devastating war. It's a sad, mean, and desolate place. Life is marginal and tough at Industria.

2Lt. Athena Ibaz, now acting commander of the Centurion Team, is operating incognito. Instead of her elegant Federal Forces uniform, Athena is dressed in rather soiled-looking civilian clothes. It is crucial that Vincent Ferrario and his people do not become aware of Athena's identity or purpose.

Athena eyes the desolate streets of Industria Town warily. No sign of Ferrario or his mecha mercenaries, but there are plenty of Industria's average citizens: the arms merchants, pimps, hookers, drug dealers, gangsters, etc.

After walking through the streets for a while, Athena encounters something she hasn't sensed in a long time…a powerful pressure against her brain. Athena is a Newtype, and she is sensitive to the presence of other Newtypes. Now, on the lonely, dead end streets of Industria Colony, Athena feels the pressure of a Newtype presence more intense than she has ever sensed before – even greater than Char Aznable, Haman Khan, or Judau Ashta.

Athena follows the pressure to its source – a lamp post against which leans a girl. The girl is a teenager, no more than fifteen years old at most. Athena notices that the girl is of Asian descent, with unruly, long black hair that reaches halfway down her back. Athena notices the girl's scruffy clothing – torn jeans, leather jacket, grimy t-shirt, leather boots, and an old, Gryps Conflict era Earth Federation Forces officer's cap worn backwards on her head.

Athena also notices the smirking irreverence expressed in the girl's body language. Most of all, however, Athena notices how extraordinarily…pretty the girl is despite her battered clothing and disheveled appearance. The girl is not very tall, perhaps five foot one in height. She does, however, have a glamour model's long, graceful legs and petite, trim figure. The skin on the girl's angelic babyface is smooth as creamy silk, with wide, expressive eyes and a delicate-looking mouth.

Athena regards the girl with a mixture of admiration and envy. _She's beautiful,_ Athena reflects. _Many a man's daydream, I suppose._ Athena herself is an extraordinarily attractive young woman, beautiful as a former royal princess should be, and she had often needed to fend off the attention of young male officer trainees at the academy. This girl, however, makes Athena feel average-looking.

Athena then remembers what drew her to the girl in the first place, _What an incredibly powerful Newtype this girl is! Not even Char or Haman emanated this magnitude of power._

Athena forces herself to refocus her attention on the task at hand. Although the Newtype girl is fascinating, Athena cannot afford to be distracted. She had to find Ferrario and the stolen prototype immediately. Athena walks by the girl without looking at her again.

Ten seconds later, Athena has a vague sensation that something is wrong. She feels the back pocket of her trousers. Her wallet is missing! Athena turns around to find the young girl running away into an alley. Athena gives pursuit.

Athena chases the girl down several back alleys. She comes to a startled halt when she sees the girl suddenly standing calmly in front of her.

In the girl's right hand is Athena's wallet.

"All right, Miss," Athena warns, "you'd better give that back to me right now."

The girl simply smiles.

Athena lunges at the girl…but the girl is gone!

Athena hears mocking laughter, and finds the girl squatting on top of a trash can behind her.

_How did she get back there?!_ Athena wonders.

Angry now, Athena aims a punch for the girl's face. The punch connects, but not with the girl's face. An instant before impact, the girl executes a graceful, acrobatic backflip, at the same time lifting the trash can lid she had been squatting on and bringing it up like a medieval knight's shield.

Athena's knuckles collide painfully with the trash can lid, causing her to yelp in pain.

By now, the pretty Asian girl is laughing hysterically. Athena, livid, tries an open handed karate blow, but is flipped over onto her back in one lightning quick move by the girl. From her position on the ground, Athena tries a sweepkick to trip the girl. This too fails, as the girl easily leaps to avoid Athena's sweeping leg.

Athena stands up, thoroughly embarrassed and frustrated now. She launches a number of kung-fu strikes at the girl. The girl effortlessly dodges or blocks all of Athena's blows, and retaliates with a series of blindingly fast blows of her own, the likes of which Athena has never seen before.

The girl finishes it with a powerful kick to Athena's midsection, knocking the breath out of the new Centurion Team leader.

Athena lies on floor – dazed, stunned, and humiliated. She has had three years of combat training in the Federal Military Academy. She has mastered a half dozen different martial arts to expert level. She is a certified Special Operations Forces officer, the deadliest class of soldier to be found anywhere. But this dainty-looking Asian girl had made Athena look like rank amateur!

As Athena marvels at the girl's unbelievable agility and combat prowess, the girl speaks for the first time, "You actually fight really good, Red. But I'm Jolie Minh, and I'm the best there ever was!"

The girl who called herself Jolie smiles at Athena, pockets the wallet, and turns to leave.

Athena reaches out for something to grab onto for support. She grasps something that feels like a net. Athena looks up and grins wickedly; she gives the net a terrific tug.

Nets are suspended between the dilapidated high-rise structures of Industria Colony to catch any debris that might be unscrupulously dropped from the upper levels. It is one of these that Athena pulls down on Jolie.

The net descends on Jolie. In spite of her cat-quick reflexes, her gymnastic agility, and her amazing fighting skills, Jolie can't fight her way out of the huge net descending around her.

Athena takes advantage of Jolie's momentary immobilization to grab onto the girl, "Give me my wallet back!"

As Athena struggles with Jolie, she suddenly hears the sound of approaching footsteps. Athena looks up and finds herself staring at the sinister, sunglass-wearing visage of Vincent Ferrario, the infamous arms dealer. Ferrario points a thin, but potent pistol at the two young women.

Almost instinctively, Athena shoves Jolie (who is still snared in the net) down a utility chute built into the outside wall of the nearby building. Athena immediately dives down the chute herself after shoving Jolie in.

Ferrario fires a few rounds down into the chute, wondering if he had stricken his quarry.

Down in the cellar that the chute leads into, Athena helps Jolie out of the net. Every few seconds, bullets rain down around them.

Jolie glares at Athena, "What the hell have you gotten us into, Red?" Jolie demands, referring to Athena's reddish hair.

Athena pulls Jolie aside as a few more shots rain down, "Listen, Jolie, isn't it? My name's Athena Ibaz. I know I don't look like it right now, but I'm an officer with the Earth Federation Forces. That man trying to kill us up there is a mercenary working for the I.S.R.L.A., and he's got a piece of our military property. I've got to force him to turn it over, but I need your help."

Jolie is a little overwhelmed by what Athena has told her, "Well…"

"Well, what?!" Athena demands urgently as the bullets explode around them again.

Jolie nods, and kicks open a wooden board against a wall of the cellar, revealing the entrance to another utility passage, wide enough to accommodate a slim young woman if she were to crawl in on her hands and knees.

Jolie tells Athena, "This leads to the basement of the building across the alley. I can crawl over, climb up, and sneak up on our boogeyman from behind, OK?"

Athena smiles, "Go for it!"

Jolie disappears into the chute. When she reaches the basement of the other building, she climbs up yet another utility chute back into the alley.

Jolie grins as she spots Ferrario, his back turned to her, angrily firing his gun into the chute that Jolie and Athena had first disappeared into.

Ferrario feels a sudden light tapping on his shoulder, and turns around to confront the interloper. He is only half turned around when he feels his head snap back and his pistol flying from his hand. He never saw the terrific kick that caught him in the jaw, knocking out several teeth. Nor did Ferrario see Jolie catch his pistol as it fell.

In two seconds, Jolie has Ferrario on the ground, and puts the man's pistol to his head.

At that very same moment, Athena emerges from the delivery chute. Dusting herself off, Athena grins at Jolie, "That was very good."

Jolie shrugs with self-satisfaction.

Athena turns to Ferrario, pulling on the man's jacket lapels, "Now, Ferrario. Where is the G-100 prototype?"

Jolie cocks the pistol and presses it harder against the arms dealer's head.

"A-all right, don't shoot me! I'll lead you to it!" the man replies, naked terror in his eyes.

Ferrario leads them farther down the alley. After a five-minute walk, they are in a warehouse district. Ferrario uses a secret code number to gain entry into one of the many, anonymous and nondescript warehouse buildings that are common to Industria City. The I.S.R.L.A. confederate guides the two young women to an enormous service elevator, in which they descend some one hundred meters into the colony's bowels.

When the elevator doors open, Athena and Jolie both gasp in surprise as they realize that they have arrived in a well-maintained MS maintenance dock. Nobody would have suspected that such a facility could have existed in rundown and forgotten Industria Colony!

Out of a corner of her eye, Athena at last spots it: a massive structure, about twenty meters tall, covered by an enormous canvas. The structure's shape is vaguely humanoid, making it obvious that it is a mobile suit.

_The prototype!_ Athena realizes.

_Naturally, it's not going to be that easy_, Athena also acknowledges as she sees six men armed with carbines approaching them.

Jolie shoots at one of the men, not striking him, but destroying his weapon. The remaining five take aim to shoot the girl and her Federal Forces ally.

"Wait!" Athena says, "you've got the prototype, but it won't be useful to you unless you have the authentication code to activate its combat systems."

Ferrario, his menacing demeanor having returned now that he has Athena and Jolie under his men's guns, says, "You have this code, I presume?"

Athena nods, "I'll activate the prototype for you…it requires a bioscan by the prototype's security AI. But you have to let the girl go. She's just a civilian. She isn't involved in this. There's no reason for you to harm her."

Jolie turns to Athena with a look of profound gratitude…so long has it been since she's known anybody who has cared about her in such a manner. There is something about the young, beautiful Earth Federation Forces officer that Jolie cannot help believing in.

Ferrario replies sinisterly, "That depends on whether or not you produce the desired results, Lieutenant. Go!"

Ferrario's men usher Athena and Jolie to a crane mechanism that brings them to the cockpit hatch, which the ISRLA men have been trying for days, to no avail, to breach.

Athena opens a side panel on the cockpit gate, typing in a code. The Gundam-100's synthesized, "masculine" voice interface says, "Gundam-100 Security System Online. Identify yourself."

"Second Lieutenant Athena Ibaz," Athena says, "Serial Number G1179587888."

The AI scans Athena's physiology, confirming positive ID as Earth Federation Forces G1179587888

"Positive identification," the AI says, "Gundam-100 systems on combat standby mode. Ready for your orders, Lieutenant Ibaz."

"Code R319," Athena says.

_BOOOOOOM!!_

Code R319, test firing of left auxiliary thrust nozzle…not enough to really move a mobile suit on its own, but enough to create one hell of a fire and noise show.

Just the momentary distraction Athena and Jolie need.

The ISRLA guardsmen, caught off guard by the sudden noise and light, are thrown off balance.

Jolie reacts with catlike swiftness. She punches out the guard standing nearest her with a solid jab that breaks the man's jaw. She catches the man's falling carbine, which she uses to butt a second man off the crane. Jolie goes down on one knee, firing the carbine in the direction of Ferrario and the remaining ISRLA guardsmen, who flee from the teenager's rapid fire.

Meanwhile, Athena has boarded the Gundam-100, taking the shotgun seat from which she brings the combat systems online.

Jolie quickly joins her in the cockpit, sealing the hatch and taking the pilot's seat.

"What are you doing?" Athena demands, pulling on one of the two normalization helmets provided in the cockpit and lowering its visor.

"I can pilot this machine of yours," Jolie says, pulling on the other helmet, also lowering its visor, "You just push the buttons to keep the weapons coming back there."

Athena opens her mouth to protest, but thinks better of it as she sees two mobile suits entering the chamber on the forward view screen.

_Just my luck to be caught in here with an Amuro Ray wannabe_, Athena thinks to herself.

The deck of the MS hangar begins to vibrate with the distinctively cacophonous clodding of metallic MS feet. A pair of twenty-meter tall AMS-119 Geara Doga mobile suits suddenly appear from an enormous service corridor.

The RX-780 Gundam 100 comes to life for the first time. It is an awesome-looking mecha: a worthy descendent of the RX-78 line of Gundam mobile suits – the culmination of nearly twenty years of development and refinement. The cutting edge of the Earth Federation Forces' mobile suit research.

Jolie presses forward on the control stick. The Gundam-100 lurches forward slowly, unsteadily.

"Why's it losing power?!" Jolie complains.

Athena explains as she continues to bring the mobile suit's various combat operation systems online, "I initiated the energy buildup sequence for startup, but the main fusion engine needs an additional twenty seconds to attain the level required for combat mode. Energy level is at sixty-five percent. Now initiating secondary drive engine...energy level accelerating."

"How long is it gonna take?! Jolie demands wildly, "They're almost on us!"

Athena says serenely, "Just stay calm. Energy level at eighty-five percent and rising."

Jolie can feel the throb of the Gundam's accelerating engine underneath her cockpit seat. _Such power!_

The Geara Dogas advance menacingly towards the still unsteady Gundam-100.

Jolie's voice booms through the Gundam 100's external amplifiers, "Get your asses out of those stinking mechs now, or I'll turn you into scrap!"

One of the Geara Dogas levels its rifle cannon at the Gundam 100, only to have its weapon kicked away by the Gundam's armored right leg. The Gundam 100 catches the Geara Doga's falling weapon in its own metalshod hand.

The second Doga attempts to join the fray, but is clobbered by the butt of the Gundam 100's appropriated beam rifle.

While the two ISRLA mobile suits are still reeling from the blows they sustained, Jolie turns to Athena and says, "I'm kinda new at this, so walk me through it, 'K?"

Athena replies with a phrase that to Jolie, sounds more mellifluous than a Viennese waltz, "Weapons systems to combat mode."

"Sword! Sword!" Jolie exclaims, as she eyes the two enemy mobile suits bearing down on the Gundam 100 with their beam sabers drawn, "Gimme the fucking sword, Red!"

Athena says calmly, "Beam saber engaged."

Jolie pulls out the Gundam 100's beam saber and defly decapitates both enemy mecha with a singular, slashing motion that suggests some ancient swordfighting technique.

The two enemy mobile suits fall to the metal deck of the warehouse with a reverberating _klong_, helpless to do any more harm.

Athena looks at the view screen, "More targets outside the colony…four more mobile suits. Zakus, according to the target database."

"Rockets ready to go on this thing?" Jolie asks.

Athena has just switched the main engines on, "Primary and secondary thrusters engaged."

"Go!" Jolie replies, pressing the control stick forward.

The Gundam-100 bursts forth from the warehouse, through the colony's external wall, into space.

"Guns!" Jolie demands, "I need guns, Red!"

"The name is 'Athena,'" the new leader of the Centurion Team replies, "Beam rifle engaged."

Jolie locks onto the first target, a Zaku, and triggers a single shot from the Gundam 100's beam rifle that swiftly and completely annihilates the target.

"Missile pods engaged," Athena calls from her shotgun seat engineering station, "Targets acquired. You've got a lock-on."

Jolie triggers the fire button on the control stick, a torrent of missile fire, enough to destroy three dozen Zakus, rips forth from launch tubes mounted on the Gundam 100's shoulders, hips, and legs, creating a hellacious series of powerful explosions that violently rock the entire nearby space colony of Industria.

"My God," Athena whispers breathlessly, awed by the Gundam-100's incredible power, so much more impressive than it seemed even in the test runs.

"Yeah," is all Jolie can manage, just as breathlessly, shaken by the carnage she has unleashed.

Jolie directs the Gundam-100 back into the Industria Colony, back to the warehouse where the mobile suit had been hidden.

Vincent Ferrario and his men attempt to flee the scene aboard a land rover armed with a machine gun. Seeing the Gundam-100 looming over them, one of Ferrario's men opens fire on the massive mechanical form with the land vehicle's machine gun.

The bullets rain ineffectively against the Gundam-100's armored shell, leaving not so much as a nick.

"Acquiring new target," Athena announces, focusing the targeting computer at the fleeing land rover, "Vulcan cannon engaged."

Jolie makes a slashing gesture in front of her throat, "Gimme manual control."

Athena looks doubtfully at Jolie for an instant, then disengages the targeting computer, "Manual targeting engaged."

Jolie squeezes the trigger mechanism on the control joystick. The twin Vulcan cannon mounted on the Gundam 100's head spew forth thousands of rounds of gunfire, which spark all around the fleeing land rover, destroying the roadway in all directions around the vehicle, cutting off any possible avenue of egress.

"Stop! Stop!" Ferrario pleads, covering his head with his hands.

Jolie breathes, "So much for you, bogieman. I think the feddies are going to want to talk to you."

"Nicely done, Jolie," Athena says, offering her hand to the pretty teenager.

"Thanks," Jolie says, grasping Athena's hand, "Would have been different without you backing me. We make a good team, huh?"

_Yes, we do_, Athena thinks to herself, as a new vision comes into her head.

Three hours later, Ferrario and his accomplices are in the custody of the Federal Forces. Col. Cairlay has personally come to Industria to congratulate Athena on a job well done.

As he shakes Athena's hand, Cairlay says, "That was excellent work, Lt. Ibaz. I am, however, saddened to hear about Capt. Tinne."

Athena, back in her Federal Forces uniform, nods, "The captain died bravely in the line of duty, sir." Quickly changing the subject, Athena adds, "Having seen the Gundam 100 in action, sir, I can understand its importance to our security."

Cairly nods in agreement, then adds, "Lieutenant, you are hereby officially assigned the position of acting commander of the Centurion Team. Provide me a full report by 0700 tomorrow morning."

"Yes, sir," Athena exchanges salutes with the colonel. The senior officer departs to see to other urgent business.

Athena looks around for Jolie, but the teenaged girl of stunning looks and even more stunning fighting skills is nowhere to be seen.

Athena is highly impressed by Jolie's abilities. Jolie is the most amazingly talented fighter that Athena has ever seen, and perhaps more importantly, Jolie's reverberating Newtype powers were beyond anything Athena had ever sensed.

_She could be very useful,_ Athena reasoned to herself, _having such a resource under my control could give me a great advantage. If I don't exploit this advantage, others surely will._

Athena drives a Federal Forces jeep from the spaceport of Industria back into the city, searching for the girl named Jolie Minh.

Athena once again steps into the alleyway where she had first encountered Jolie earlier that day. Industria's computer-operated day/night regulator is now on "nighttime" mode, and the colony is dark. The alley is empty except for a few cats scouring the trash for meager scraps of food.

"Jolie!" Athena calls out. "Jolie Minh, are you here? It's Lt. Athena Ibaz. I want to talk to you!"

Suddenly, a large debris net falls onto Athena, ensnaring her. Athena struggles to free herself.

A lithe form leaps off a nearby ledge, executing a neat double somersault before landing gracefully in front of Athena.

"Now we're even, Lieutenant," Jolie smirks at Athena, "What is it you want to talk to me about?"

Athena replies with a smile, "Well, help me out of this net and I'll be happy to tell you about it."

Jolie and Athena remove the net together, and then Jolie leads Athena into one of Industria colony's many mecha salvage yards. Amid all the piles of techno-junk is a tiny, dilapidated sheet metal shack. This is Jolie's "home."

Athena takes a look around and finds much of what she had expected: packing crates for crude chairs and tables, a sheet of old canvas as a makeshift bed. Various cans of outdated military rations, discarded junk food wrappers, half-smoked packs of cigarettes, etc.

There are also a few items that Athena had not expected to see: operating manuals for mobile suits dating back to the One Year War, various small firearms, a few ammo clips, various makeshift daggers, a broken glass bottle or two, and assorted loot in the form of pocketwatches, wallets, fake jewelery, etc.

Athena turns to Jolie, "How old are you, Jolie?"

Jolie shrugs, "Fourteen, maybe fifteen. Who cares?"

Athena puts forth another question, "How long have you been living like this?"

Jolie shrugs again, "Couple of years, I don't know. What's with all these questions, anyway? Do you feddie army officers moonlight as social workers now or something?"

Athena smiles, "I'd like to make you an offer. I'd like to invite you to join the Earth Federation Forces."

Jolie's eyes widen, then she laughs, "Do I look like soldier material to you, Lieutenant? Thanks, but no thanks! I don't wanna peel potatoes or clean out latrines or stuff like that!"

Athena nods, "It's up to you, but the Federal Forces do offer free food, free shelter, and an average annual income of…"

Athena notices that Jolie is no longer paying the attention. The girl's expression is a mixture of sadness, loneliness, and anger.

Athena, seeing that she is not reaching Jolie, sighs, "I guess I'll be going, then."

Before Athena can get out the door, Jolie rises from the makeshift canvas on which she had been lying down, "Hey, 'Thena! Wait!"

Three hours later, Athena leads young Jolie to the spacedock, and the two board a shuttle for Green Noah Colony in Side 7. A legendary friendship and partnership is born.


	3. Chapter 3: ORIGINS

EPISODE 3: ORIGINS

Athena and Jolie arrive at Green Noah Colony in Side 7. It's been years since Jolie has been anywhere other than the dead-end streets of Industria Colony. She is dazzled by the lights and activity of Green Noah Colony, so much brighter and more vibrant than Industria. The businesses look new and prosperous, servicing the millions of civilian and military occupants in the colony. There are senior citizens, kids, young adults, etc. It's a shining, bustling modern metropolis, unlike the forgotten slum that Jolie had spent the past few years in.

Athena keeps a close eye on Jolie, making sure she doesn't shoplift any jewelry or pick the pocket of some unsuspecting civilian.

Athena takes Jolie to the local recruiting office for the Earth Federation Forces. Jolie is enlisted as a Mobile Suit Space Corps Cadet, and is to be trained over a period of six months as an MS pilot for the Federal Forces. 

As Jolie does not need to report for initiation roll call for two days, Athena invites Jolie to dinner at a posh, upscale restaurant in Green Noah City. Athena orders a bottle of the restaurant's finest red wine.

The waiter, the manager, the restaurant owner, and the well-heeled patrons of the restaurant cast disapproving glances at the pretty, but scruffily-dressed Jolie Minh. Her lack of table manners doesn't help matters either.

None of this seems to bother Athena and Jolie as they get to know one another better. Athena pours Jolie another glass of wine, the teenager's third…

_So I'm corrupting a youth,_ Athena thinks to herself, _It's just as well. In the months to come, Jolie's going to be corrupted by things far worse than this wine."_ Judging from Jolie's response to the wine, this is definitely not the girl's first taste of liquor.

Athena fields a question that had been on her mind since she first met Jolie, "How did you end up at Industria Colony? You don't strike me as being a native there."

Jolie puts down the glass of wine and looks downcast.

Athena senses that she has touched a painful subject for the girl, "I'm sorry. If it's too difficult to discuss…"

Jolie shakes her head, her eyes moist with tears, "No, it's OK. I actually do want to talk about it."

Athena waits silently, expectantly.

Tears begin falling from Jolie's eyes, running down her cheek as she begins, "I used to be an ordinary girl living an ordinary life with my family in the Quebec Colony, Side 5. Daddy, Mommy, my big brother Jean, and me. Daddy was an MS pilot for the civil defense forces and Mommy was a housewife. My brother and I went to school just like normal kids. Then, on my tenth birthday…"

_A flashback sequence of Jolie Minh's childhood. The camera pans towards Quebec Colony in Side 5. A legend appears on the screen, "October 6, U.C. 0092."_

Quebec Colony was founded by space colonists from Quebec, Canada on Earth. Consequently, the colony's culture is very French in character. Many Vietnamese people, whose ancestors on Earth once lived under French rule in the 20th Century of the old Gregorian calendar, also live in the colony. It was here that Earth Federation Forces Civil Defense Corps MS pilot 1Lt. Dominic Minh and his wife, Lucie and their two children, Jean and Jolie lived.

Breakfast time at the Minh home on October 6, U.C. 0092 was no different from any other morning. 1Lt. Minh read a report about some kind of tactical alert while drinking his morning coffee.

Mrs. Minh looked at her husband worriedly, noting the somber expression on his face, "Is something wrong, honey? Are the Zeons going to attack the colonies again?'

1Lt. Minh inhales deeply. Over the last few months, Side 5 had been under periodic attack by elements of the Phobos Division of the Neo Zeon forces. The Phobos Division was commanded by a young Zeon colonel named Alexander Miguel, the son of an aristocratic Zeon general named Carloman Miguel (previously seen in Episode 1). Colonel Alexander Miguel is infamous among the Federal Forces for his particularly cruel and vicious attacks against civilian space colonies. Already, Miguel's forces have put a serious dent in Side 5's civil defense network, and reinforcements from Earth have not been forthcoming.

1Lt. Minh believed that all that would soon change. The report that 1Lt. Minh is reading indicates that the Federal Forces would send the Lond Bell Force to deal with the Phobos problem. The Lond Bell Force was commanded by the legendary Captain Amuro Ray, pilot of the original Gundam and hero of the One Year War, himself.

The knowledge that the Lond Bell Force and Captain Amuro were on the way gave Dom Minh reason to be optimistic, so he reassured his wife, "Don't worry, Lucie. Things will be fine. Federation HQ is sending Lond Bell to reinforce us. The Zeons won't beat them. Let's not frighten the kids, OK?"

Lucie Minh nods, and changes the subject to something comparatively lighter, "You know, Dominic, Jolie was kept in detention at school again yesterday."

Dominic blinks somewhat dumbfoundedly at this wife, "Again? This is the third time in as many weeks. Let me guess: she's been in another fight?"

Lucie sighs, "Yes. Our little girl is too much like you. She's got too much fight in her!"

That makes Dominic laugh, "That's daddy's little girl!"

Lucie asks, "Don't you think we should show Jolie other ways of solving problems?"

Dominic replies, "You're worried she'll get hurt? We both know that she can take care of herself very well."

"That's not the point," Lucie says, "I know Jolie has always won every fight she's been in, but we shouldn't raise our kids to be violent people."

"No, we shouldn't," Dominic agreed, "but we should also understand that our daughter's heart is always in the right place. Every fight she's gotten into at school was because she couldn't stand watching some schoolyard bully picking on the weaker kids. You know how she hates that. I'm very proud of her. She's got a hero's heart."

"She does," Lucie concurs, "but nevertheless…"

Lucie never gets to complete her remark. At that moment, twelve-year old Jean Minh and ten-year old Jolie Minh run down the stairs, heavily burdened with textbooks and backpacks.

Dominic scoops his daughter Jolie into his arms, much to Jolie's delight, "Hey, sweetie! I heard that you got into a fight at school again. Mommy and I were going to punish you right away, but since it is your birthday, we'll wait until tomorrow!"

Jolie didn't seem too worried by her father's threat of punishment. Her parents' punishments tended to be rather mild. She expected to lose the privilege of going out to play with her friends for a few weeks, "But there was this bully and…"

"But nothing," Dominic said, "not every problem is solved by caving somebody's face in."

The sound of the local school bus filled the Minhs' living room.

"We'll talk about this later," Dominic said, ushering Jolie and her brother out the door and towards the school bus, "have a good day at school and DON'T GET INTO ANY MORE FIGHTS!"

"Jolie," Mrs. Minh calls out, "Come home after school right away this afternoon. We're having a birthday party for you!"

"Sure, Mom!" Jolie replies as she dashes onto the school bus.

Recess time at Joan D'Arc Elementary School! Jolie is playing a game of basketball with the other children. In an earlier time period, Jolie might have gone on to star in the WNBA. In the Universal Century era, she merely dazzles her peers with her lightning quick maneuvers and dead accurate shot.

After a while, things start getting rough. A tough, mean school bully named Bradley pushes down little Fumiko Hasegawa, a 5th Grader in the same class as Jolie. Fumiko falls to the ground, her knees and elbows skinned.

As Fumiko begins sobbing, Bradley bounces the basketball hard against the girls head, "Hah! Wussy girl!"

Fumiko cries harder, and Bradley's anger begins to rise, "Hey, shut up you crybaby! You wanna get me into trouble! I said shut up!"

Bradley raises his hand to strike Fumiko, but his hand is caught by Jolie, who spins him around and gives him a terrific slap in the face.

"Why you little bit…" Bradley rages, lunging at Jolie.

Jolie easily evades the powerful, but clumsy bully, and knees him in the gut.

Bradley reels from the attack and takes a second to catch his breath. Growling like a rabid animal, he charges at Jolie again.

Once again, Jolie dodges the bully, extending her leg to trip him. When he rises in an attempt to strike her again, she plants a punch on his nose that sends him down for the count.

Jolie stands over the fallen bully, "Go away, Bradley, and don't let me catch you picking on my friends or anybody else again. Next time, I'm gonna hurt you for real."

Bradley, knowing that he's been beaten by a girl less than half his size, slinks away, more from humiliation than pain.

Jolie helps Fumiko up, "You OK, Fumi?"

"Yeah," Fumiko replies, "thanks, Jo."

Jolie shrugs, "No prob. Hey! You're coming to my birthday party later today, right?"

Fumiko smiles, "Yeah. Been looking forward to it."

As the school bell indicates the end of recess, Jolie tells her friend, "My house after school, then!"

At that same moment, at L'Ouverture MS Station elsewhere in the Quebec Colony, Captain Ibin Al-Atta of the MS Civil Defense Corps is briefing his subordinates.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Captain Al-Atta tells the gathered Federal Forces MS pilots, "Green Noah Command has notified me that the Phobos Division has mobilized again and will probably strike Side 5 some time tonight. We are vastly outnumbered, and reinforcements from Earth are not expected to arrive in time to assist us. The safety of all personnel and civilians in Side 5 rests with us."

1Lt. Dominic Minh clutches a defiant fist, "Let those Zeon scum come here! We'll send their sorry asses back to the asteroid belt!"

There are approving cheers among the Federal MS pilots.

"All right then," Captain Al-Atta says after the cheers die down, "Good luck to you all. Let's mobilize."

From launch ports all around the Quebec Colony, RGM-89 Jegans, RGM-86R GM-IIIs (one of which is piloted by 1Lt. Dominic Minh), and RMS-179 GM-IIs sortie out in formation to meet the onslaught of the Phobos Division.

_Some distance away, the Phobos Division approaches. They are five _Gwadjin_ class battlecruisers and fifty MS strong. Among the flotilla of standard, green-colored AMS-119 Geara Dogas is a single black AMS-119S Officer's Geara Doga._

In the cockpit of the black mobile suit is twenty-five year old Colonel Alexander Miguel. One of the most decorated young officers in Fuhrer Char Aznable's Neo Zeon army, Alexander has recently assumed command of the Phobos Division after the passing of his father, General Carloman Miguel. Alexander has earned himself a reputation as one of the deadliest and most ruthless military commanders on either the Earth or Zeon side.

_Major Ross Davenport, a good friend of Alexander's since their days together in the Zeon Archduchy Military Academy, addresses his friend and commanding officer through the tactical net, "Alex?"_

Alex's cold, strong voice comes through the tac net, "Ross?"

Davenport continues, "Sir, may I take the liberty of asking what our objective is in attacking this colony? The Fuhrer…"

Alexander silences Davenport, "The Fuhrer is the visionary and inspiration of our people, Major. The people of Zeon can never truly be free until the last degenerate Earthnoid Oldtype is eradicated. Our enemies are not only those who live on the Earth, Ross, but also those who live in space, but give their allegiance to those worms who burrow themselves into the Earth. These are traitors, Ross, and you know what fate awaits traitors."

At the Minh household back in Quebec Colony, Jolie's tenth birthday party is underway. Jolie is about to hack into the cake samurai-style, but pauses to ask her mother, "Where's Daddy?"

Mrs. Minh smiles at Jolie, "Daddy had to work late, sweetie, but I'm sure he'll be back by the time you open your presents."

Jolie isn't pleased by this. She adores her father, and is deeply disappointed that he isn't at her birthday party. Still, she understands that her father's work of defending their space colony was important…maybe even more important than her birthday.

"C'mon, sis!" Jean Minh demands eagerly, "Cut the cake! We're starving here!"

With a mischievous grin, Jolie hacks the cake with a samurai chop, sending frosting everywhere, much to the delight of all the other kids (but not so much Mrs. Minh, who has to clean up the mess).

Outside the Quebec Colony, the Phobos Division and the Federal Forces' civil defense squadrons are about to clash!

Captain Al-Atta, in his RGM-79 Jegan, addresses his pilots through the Federal Forces tac net, "Enemy MS sighted, bearing four three zero niner. We have signatures: AMS-119 Geara Dogas. Fifty in number. Contact in twenty-five seconds. Stand by to commence firing."

On the other side, Alexander Miguel smiles predatorily, his mouth watering, "Smite them," he orders with a rasp.

The battle is joined in an instant. Here, a Jegan detaches the head of a Geara Doga with its beam saber. There, a Doga turns a GM-II into flaming wreckage with its gatling beam rifle. In another part of the battle zone, a Zeon MS forces its hand into a Federal MS's cockpit and crushes its pilot to death. Terrible scenes of MS warfare erupt everywhere.

Before long, it becomes evident that the tide is turning badly against the Federal Forces. Captain Al-Atta, battered and bloodied in his seriously damaged, atmosphere-leaking MS, grunts out an order, "Don't let them attack the colony!"

A GM-II attempts a strafing dive at Col. Alexander Miguel's black Geara Doga, only to have its cockpit and pilot blown away by a shot from the black Doga's beam rifle.

"Filthy Earthnoid," Alexander sneers, the thrill of battle and bloodlust coursing in his arteries and veins.

Lt. Minh sees that a good number of Zeon MS have penetrated the civil defense network and are attacking Quebec Colony. Already, the colony has started to burn.

"Sgt. Jiminez! Cpl. Tracy! Cpl. Zhang!" Dominic snarls through the tac net, "Follow me! We've got to return to base!"

Back on Quebec Colony, Lucie Minh and her children are among the thousands of terrified civilians scrambling to get to emergency shelters. They dodge explosions, fire, and falling debris.

To everyone's horror, the flaming wreckage of a Federal Forces civil defense MS rains down around them, followed shortly by the appearance of Zeon Geara Doga mobile suits.

The Dogas descend into Quebec Colony and open fire indiscriminately, lashing out at everything and everyone in sight. Hundreds die within seconds, and many more are seriously wounded. Entire families are wiped out in less time than it takes to tell about it.

Lucie Minh searches frantically in the chaos for her children, "Jean? Jolie?!"

"M-mom…" a weak, plaintive voice groans. Jean Minh has been impaled by a large piece of flying shrapnel. The boy's blood drains from a wound the width of his entire abdomen.

Jolie, thrown aside by a nearby explosion, but not seriously harmed, rushes to the side of her mother and her fallen brother.

"Jean," Jolie begins, staring in horrified shock at her gravely wounded brother.

Suddenly, two more MS blast their way into the colony and land on each side of the Minh family. On one side is Alexander Miguel's black Geara Doga, on the other side is the GM-III piloted by 1Lt. Dominic Minh.

Dominic notices the presence of his wife and children, and his eyes widen with horror, "Get into a shelter, now!" he urges them.

Dominic takes a closer look, and immediately wishes that he hadn't. Meeting his eyes is a sight that breaks his heart: his own son, Jean, lies dead in a pool of his own blood.

Tears flood the man's eyes, and a vicious, animalistic growl bursts forth from him as he turns his gaze back on Alexander Miguel's black mobile suit, "You Zeon pig! You murdered my son!"

Lt. Minh's GM-III, its beam saber ignited, rushes Alexander Miguel's Geara Doga. Miguel easily avoids Minh's enraged slash, and turns around to strike the GM-III with the butt of his Doga's beam cannon.

Dominic's GM-III is batted onto the pavement, its sensors and control systems malfunctioning.

Miguel prepares to blow away the skyscraper that towers over the spot where the Minhs are crouching.

In a last, valiant effort, Dominic attempts to use his MS's depleted beam cannon to put a chokehold on Alexander Miguel's Geara Doga. Miguel easily counters the move, flipping the GM-III onto a nearby condominium complex.

Alexander is tired of toying with his enemy. He fires a shot from his mecha's beam cannon, straight through the middle of the Federal Forces MS.

The GM-III explodes, killing 1Lt. Minh immediately. Shrapnel from his destroyed MS is propelled in all directions, and a dozen pieces of this shrapnel strike Lucie Minh.

Jolie, struggling to free herself from the rubble that had shielded her from the shrapnel, watches the scene in horror. Her father's corpse remains somewhere in the burning wreckage of his MS, cremated in the blasted cockpit.

The bloodied corpses of Jolie's mother and brother lie nearby, silent and cold forever.

Through tear-clouded eyes, Jolie sees the shape of the black Zeon mobile suit that took her family's lives. 

A look of hatred appears on Jolie's face, "You…!" she rages helplessly.

Alexander Miguel sees the little girl standing amid the burning runs of the city street. He points his mobile suit's beam rifle barrel directly at the girl, then switches on his mobile suit's external speakers so that she can hear his condemnation of her life, "One last Earth degenerate to cleanse from the universe."

The word "degenerate" echoes through Jolie's ears. She is too young to know what the word actually means, but she senses the malice behind the word. She knows that the man inside the black mobile suit who killed her parents and brother hates her. She also knows that she hates him a thousand times more strongly.

The finger of Alexander's mobile suit tightens on the trigger of its beam rifle…

_Suddenly, there is the sound of more explosions. Federal Forces reinforcements have finally arrived. It is the Lond Bell Force, commanded by the legendary Captain Amuro Ray._

Like the proverbial cavalry charging over the hill, the Lond Bell Force's RGZ-91 Re-GZs and RGM-89S Jegan Customs tear into the Quebec Colony, sweeping the Neo Zeon mobile suits out. A Re-GZ lands between Jolie and Alexander Miguel's Geara Doga, and a powerful Newtype PSI-energy spark momentarily erupts from Jolie's head towards the Re-GZ.

_In the cockpit of the Federal Forces mobile suit, a reciprocal spark emanates from the pilot's helmeted head._

"What?" Captain Amuro Ray reacts to the power of Jolie's spark, "That pressure. It's stronger than Char or Lalah, and different from both."

Amuro turns his attention back to the task at hand, "Colonel Miguel, this is Captain Amuro Ray of the Earth Federation Forces. I order you to lay down your weapons and surrender immediately!"

_Alexander's response is to pull out his Geara Doga's beam saber and charge at Amuro's Re-GZ. Amuro easily dodges the slash and responds with a beam saber slash of his own, severing the arm of Miguel's Doga with a single, spectacular move._

Alexander decides to cut his losses and run. Alexander might be an egotist and a great ace pilot in his own right, but he's also canny enough to realize that he has no hope of winning against the legendary Amuro Ray.

"Retreat!" Alexander orders his troops as he lays down a volley of blinding flares and smoke bombs to cover his escape.

Captain Amuro leaves it to his comrades in the Lond Bell Force to pursue Miguel and the retreating Phobos forces. He is more concerned about the little girl whose Newtype spark he had sensed moments earlier.

Amuro climbs out of the cockpit of the Re-GZ and removes his helmet. Jolie, seeing him for the first time, envisions Amuro as a knight in shining silver armor.

Amuro approaches the frightened girl gently, a friendly smile on his face, "All you all right, kid?"

Jolie runs into Amuro's arms, sobbing. Amuro holds the girl tightly and tries to console her.

We came too late,_ Amuro reflects sadly,_ this girl survived, but her life will never be the same. Those soldiers who did this didn't think that these people here are no different from the families and loved ones they left behind at home. Damn this war!__

A few hours later, Amuro takes Jolie by the hand to an Earth Federation Government war orphans' welfare center. This is an agency of the Earth Federation Government organized to provide care for children orphaned by the war. Sadly, during the past quarter century, this particular government agency has needed to grow almost larger than the military itself.

Amuro is reluctant to turn Jolie over to the Federal government authorities. Were he a civilian, he would seriously consider adopting Jolie himself. As a soldier whose duty is to hunt down Zeon terrorists, however, he cannot provide care for the girl, and has no choice but to leave her in government care.

Jolie clutches desperately at the sleeve of Amuro's uniform jacket, "Captain Amuro, I don't want to stay here! Please take me with you! I want to go with you!"

Amuro kneels in front of the girl and puts his hands on her shoulders, "Jolie, you can't come with me, but the people here are very kind and they'll take good care of you. There are many people out there who need my protection. As much as I'd like to, I can't bring you with me."

Having seen her own family die, Jolie can understand the importance of Amuro's duty. He could not afford to be encumbered. Brave, dedicated soldiers such as Captain Amuro and her late father were the only chance that innocent people had against monsters such as Alexander Miguel.

Amuro gives Jolie an affectionate kiss on the cheek and a pat on the head, then turns to leave.

Jolie watches the Federation's greatest ace pilot depart to continue his duties. Although she would never see him again, Captain Amuro Ray has become her lifelong hero and role model.

_That night, dressed in the used clothes provided to her by the government authorities, Jolie prepares to escape from the Federal orphanage. She would much rather survive on her own than live as a ward of the Earth Federation Government._

Sneaking out of the orphanage compound proves to be easy, but where next came the more difficult problem of where to go next.

Jolie finds her way to the colony spacedock. She locates a cargo shuttle carrying recyclable materials. The shuttle is about to leave for the Industria Colony of Side 5. Jolie knows nothing about Industria Colony, or that the shuttle is headed there, but decides to take her chances. Jolie boards the shuttle, bound for the industrial colony that would be her home for the next five years.

A time-lapse montage depicts the following five years of Jolie's life as she struggles to grow up in the gritty environment of Industria Colony. During these years, Jolie refines her fighting skills, supplementing her childhood martial arts training with streetfighting techniques. Jolie survives by shoplifting, cat burglarizing, and pocketpicking, soon becoming an expert of stealth, evasion, and thievery. Jolie also frequently finds herself in the midst of Industria Colony's street fights, and causes a startling amount of carnage with just a single broken glass bottle, iron pipe, or self-made shiv. In time, Jolie becomes the stuff of urban legend, her name written as graffiti on walls, benches, and lampposts. Even Industria's harder edged criminals regard Jolie with a measure of fear and respect. 

Jolie's account of her past ends as Athena pours the girl a fifth glass of expensive bourbon. Jolie is bleary eyed from both the alcohol and the tears she let fall as she told Athena about her past.

Athena can empathize: the loss of parents, abandonment by heroes, growing up alone – it is all too familiar to Athena.

"So you were rescued by Amuro Ray," Athena muses aloud, "Interesting…"

Athena chuckles to herself as she considers the irony of that: Athena herself had once been rescued from attacking Federation Forces by Char Aznable, who had been Amuro Ray's great lifelong nemesis. It had been Char who had mentored and cared for Athena for a period of three years before he met his final fate battling Amuro Ray in Earth's orbit.

Doubling the irony is the fact that Athena's father, Admiral Dozle Zabi of the Zeon Archduchy Space Fleet, had also been killed by Amuro Ray during the One Year War. Athena has never hated Amuro Ray, however. In Athena's view, personal loss is an inevitability of war, and she has never taken the loss of her father and mentor on a personal level. Holding on to old hatreds would be vain: Athena's focus is on the present and the future, not the past. The past is what she seeks to escape from.

Jolie's story is almost a mirror image of Athena's: rescued by attacking Zeon forces by Amuro Ray, but instead of being raised and cultivated by her benefactor, Jolie had been left to find her own path. Since the loss of her family, Jolie has been seething for vengeance. The evil grin of Alexander Miguel, and his maniacal laugh, continues to haunt Jolie's nightmares. She would find no peace until he was dead at her hands.

Reading deeply into Jolie's beautiful face, Athena asks, "Jolie…have you ever killed anyone before?"

The directness of the question startles Jolie slightly. The girl doesn't know what to say.

Expecting that reaction, Athena asks, "Just answer the question: this isn't a trick to nail you."

Jolie, uncertain why, but somehow trusting Athena, finally admits, "Yeah. Yeah, I have…not because I like killing, but Industria's a tough place, you know? I've had to kill lots of times just to stay alive. I'm not proud of it or anything. It's just something I had to do"

Athena nods knowingly as she sips from her own glass of bourbon, also her sixth, "Understood. To me, it's good that you don't have any hangups about killing, because what I have in mind for you will require you to do quite a bit of bloodletting."

Jolie puts down her wine glass and asks, "You're planning on making me a killer for the Federal Forces?"

"Not a killer," Athena corrects, "an instrument of justice…and not necessarily for the Federal Forces, but for all those who have suffered in these endless wars."

"I don't get you," Jolie replies.

Athena continues after a slight pause, "The world is the way it is today because small men with small minds have been ruling it for too long. That's why your parents...and my parents...are dead, Jolie. Many more parents, and their children, will die in the years to come…unless we change this world."

Jolie lets out a little laugh, "Just how are two teenaged girls supposed to change the world, Lieutenant?"

Athena smiles, sipping from her glass again, "Come with me, and you'll learn. We can change this world, Jolie. We can create a future in which terrible things such as happened to our families will never happen again. Do you want others to go through what you've gone through, Jolie? Or do you want to help me to change the world?"

Something about what Athena says, and how she says it, causes Jolie to deeply believe in the young Federal Forces officer. This Athena Ibaz certainly has a very definite goal, a steely determination to achieve it, and a mind that absolutely has the intellectual capacity to make her vision a reality.

This line of thought provokes Jolie's curiosity about the classy, beautiful, and sophisticated young woman, three years her senior, sitting across from her, "So what's your story, Lieutenant? You said something about your dead parents just a minute ago. Who are you? Where were you from?"

Athena smiles a mysterious, bitter smile, and pauses for a moment's reflection before answering, "I was no one special, and where I'm from doesn't matter. I'm not concerned with yesterdays; only tomorrows."

Jolie is a bit disappointed that Athena is not as candid with her as she had been with Athena. Clearly, the pretty, elegant, and refined young Federal officer has her secrets, but Jolie figures she can crack those secrets…in time.

"So are you with me or not?" Athena asks, interrupting Jolie's thoughts.

"To change the world, you mean?" Jolie replies after a moment.

Athena extends her hand to Jolie with an encouraging grin.

Jolie takes Athena's hand in a solemn grip, "I'll do it, but there's something I want too."

"Alexander Miguel's blood?" Athena ventures.

Jolie nods.

Athena replies, "If it serves my goals, then yes, and the elimination of warmongers such as Miguel is definitely part of the plan."

And so a friendship and partnership is born and sealed. Two young women, neither yet twenty years of age, begin a quest to change a world that had been blighted by war for too long.


	4. Chapter 4: THE FIRST SORTIE

EPISODE 4: THE FIRST SORTIE

Six months have passed. During these six months, Athena Ibaz has been formally appointed as commanding officer of the Centurion Team, replacing the team's slain first commanding officer, Captain Rick Tinne. With the new appointment comes a two-rank promotion (for recovering the Gundam-100 prototype). Athena is now a captain.

At the same time, Jolie Minh has completed basic training at the Federal Forces academy. An unprecedented talent, Jolie has broken all previous performance records in MS combat training for the Federal Forces. She is clearly a prodigy of tremendous potential, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by Federation High Command.

Athena has requested, and received authorization, to have Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh assigned as her personal assistant and executive officer. Athena has persuaded the high command that because she had been the one who first discovered Jolie and identified the girl's Newtype potential, then she should also be the one to oversee Jolie's development as a Federal Forces soldier.

Athena has also requested that the Gundam-100 be assigned to the Centurion Team, to be piloted by Jolie. Federation High Command is still deliberating this matter, but Athena strongly believes that this request will also be authorized.

It is January 1, U.C. 0098, the start of a new year. Captain Athena Ibaz is hard at work in her private office, drafting plans for more effective counterterrorism tactics to be used against the ISRLA and Zeon remnants.

A knock comes on the door of Athena's office. Without looking up from her work, Athena answers, "Come in, please."

The door opens and 2Lt. Gene Spencer, Colonel Cairlay's personal aide, enters.

2Lt. Spencer salutes, "Thank you, ma'am. 2Lt. Spencer reporting, ma'am. Ma'am, General Noah and Colonel Cairlay request your presence at tonight's Armistice Commemorative Ball at 20:00 in Reville Hall."

Athena nods and looks at the stylish, French baroque style clock on her wall.

_January 1, 0080_, Athena muses to herself, _the day the One Year War came to an end. Just one of many days of reckoning for all of us._

Habitually, Athena pulls a handkerchief from the front pocket of her uniform jacket, wipes her hands tersely, and repockets it before replying, "Thank you, Lieutenant. I will be there at 20:00. Please inform Colonel Cairlay that I will be bringing a special guest with me."

2Lt. Spencer salutes Athena again and leaves to carry out his orders.

Athena picks up her desk phone and keys the direct line to the officers' academy, "This is Captain Ibaz. Please patch me through to Sergeant Major Atsuka."

19:00 that evening. Captain Athena Ibaz is decked out in her formal Earth Federation Special Forces officer's uniform, which includes the officer's hat and commander's overcoat, which Athena wears draped over her shoulders.

Athena is in a dormitory corridor of the officers' academy. She stops at the door of room 780 and knocks on the door gently, "Jolie? We're due at Reville Hall in an hour. Are you ready?"

Jolie's muffled voice comes from behind the door, "Yeah. Just a minute!"

A moment later, the door opens. Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh emerges. Six months in the Federal Forces' academy has made a world of difference. The formerly unkempt and scruffy teenaged street vixen is now a very pretty and immaculately groomed young Federal Forces officer…courtesy of Athena Ibaz's handiwork.

Athena takes in an eyeful of the "new" Jolie and cannot help but laugh. She cannot help feeling some pride in how she's helped to transform Jolie.

"What?" Jolie asks, "Do I look weird in the uniform?"

Athena shakes her head and gives Jolie an encouraging grin, "You look very pretty. I think you'll go over well with the senior officers tonight."

Athena makes some final adjustments to Jolie's uniform, straightening Jolie's junior officer's cap, making sure Jolie's uniform jacket is buttoned all the way up, smoothing out minor wrinkles, etc.

As she does this, Athena reminds Jolie, "Now don't forget, you'll be meeting some very important people in the Earth Federation Forces tonight. I want you to behave yourself and not do anything to embarrass us, understand?"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Jolie responds in an annoyed tone. Jolie swears Athena is like a mother hen sometimes.

Athena glares at her. Jolie, taking the hint, grins sheepishly and salutes, "Yes, ma'am, Captain Ibaz, ma'am. Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh reporting, ma'am!"

Athena gives Jolie a wry grin and a pat on the rear. The partners make their way to Reville Hall.

Reville Hall: tonight, the elegant, neoclassical building is splendidly decorated for the New Year's/Armistice Commemorative Ball. It's an exclusive event to which only the Earth Federation Forces' most important and prestigious members and their closest associates are invited. The grand chandeliers are brightly illuminated. The marble-tiled floor gleams. An orchestra group plays a lively Richard Strauss waltz as officers drink and dance the night away.

Captain Athena Ibaz and Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh arrive at Reville Hall. Stewards take their officer's hats and overcoats.

Colonel Cairlay, conversing with several flag-ranking Federation officers, excuses himself to greet Athena, "Captain Ibaz, it is a pleasure to have you here tonight."

Following military protocol that Athena knows better than her own name, Athena replies, "It is an honor to be here, sir."

Colonel Cairlay spots Jolie and fixes her in his predatory gaze, "And who is this attractive young officer you've brought with you, Captain? Her beauty matches yours."

Before Athena can reply, Jolie pipes up, extending her hand to the colonel, "I'm Jolie. Jolie Minh. Glad to meetcha!"

Cairlay is taken a bit aback by Jolie's lack of discipline and protocol, but says only, "Ah, yes. You're the young woman who helped Captain Ibaz to recover the Gundam-100 prototype six months ago. I've heard your name often during the past several months. It's good to have you in the Earth Federation Forces, Chief Warrant Officer Minh."

Ignoring everything that Colonel Cairlay says, Jolie adds, "You must be a really high ranking guy in the Fed Forces. Got to be with that scary-looking face and a scary-sounding voice you've got!"

Athena glares silently at Jolie as the girl smiles impishly.

Colonel Cairlay reddens, but maintains his outward composure and tells Athena, "Captain, please excuse me, there are several other officers I need to greet over there."

So saying, Cairlay departs quickly.

Athena motions Jolie aside. When they've reached a quiet spot, Athena whispers harshly to her, "What's up with the attitude? I told you to behave yourself, remember?"

Jolie shrugs, "Sorry. I didn't like that guy. He's creepy."

Athena sighs and nods, "Even so, he's our direct superior, Jolie. If you're going to make it in the Special Forces, you need to be able to follow the rules of military protocol, among a thousand other things."

Their discussion is interrupted by the arrival of a steward, who offers them glasses of champagne. Athena and Jolie each take a glass of the bubbly spirit.

"I could get used to this," Jolie says, taking a sip from her champagne glass.

General Bright Noah approaches them, "Good to see you, Captain Ibaz. And this must be the Chief Warrant Officer Minh you've been telling me about."

"General Noah, sir," Athena acknowledges, "Yes. This is Jolie Minh. Jolie, this is General Bright Noah."

Jolie's eyes widen in recognition, "Oh, wow. You're like, THE Bright Noah! You were the commander of the _White Base_ during the One Year War and the _Ahrgama_ during the Gryps War. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir!"

In spite of herself, Athena cannot help smiling. Clearly, Jolie has much more respect for General Noah than she did for Colonel Cairlay.

Bright chuckles in modesty and amusement over Jolie's enthusiasm, "I was just in the right place at the right time more than any man has a right to be, Chief Minh. The real heroes are the ones who can't be here tonight."

Nearby space: a squadron of ten RGM-89 GM-III mobile suits assigned to the Side 6 Civil Defense Guard is chasing what appears to be an MA-08 Byg Zam mobile armor in the general direction of Side 7. The Byg Zam is piloted by Major Luther Bonham, a 35-year old former Side 6 Civil Defense Guard officer who is now, for reasons yet unrevealed, a fugitive from his former comrades-at-arms.

Two of the Side 6 CDG GM-IIIs fire their beam rifles and a spread of missiles at the Byg Zam. The giant mobile armor's ion-neutralization field (I-Field) dissipates the beam energy of the GM-IIIs' gunfire, but the missiles rock the mobile armor violently.

Inside the Byg Zam's cockpit, Major Bonham grimaces through the impact. A handsome man with a thin moustache and hair worn slicked back in a classic Valentino style, Bonham is eerily calm as his finger squeezes the trigger mechanism built into the Byg Zam's control yoke.

Blazing hellfire erupts forth from the maw of the Byg Zam's heavy particle beam cannon, instantly immolating the three GM-IIIs in its path and forcing their surviving comrades to break off the pursuit.

Captain Huisook Song, leader of the Side 6 GM-III squad in pursuit of the Byg Zam, orders his team to withdraw and opens a communications channel to Green Noah EFSF High Command, "This is Side 6 Civil Defense Guard to Federal Garrison Noah, please acknowledge, Garrison Noah!"

Back at Reville Hall, a tense Colonel Cairlay searches the crowded ballroom for General Bright Noah. Cairlay finds the general in the midst of a conversation with Captain Athena Ibaz.

Cairlay whispers something urgently into General Noah's ear. The general gives Cairlay an appalled look, excuses himself, and begins to head towards a conference room with a colonel.

Within seconds, General Noah pauses to reconsider, and turns around to face Athena, "Captain Ibaz, would you please join us?"

Athena replies, "Yes, sir," and prepares to join her two superior officers.

Jolie, who had been quietly and bewilderedly watching all this, protests, "Hey, Athena? What about me?!"

Athena turns to Jolie and buttons up Jolie's uniform jacket (which she has left open around the neck again, to Athena's annoyance) and tells her, "Wait for me until 22:30. If I'm not back by then, return to your quarters so that you won't be AWOL, understand?"

With that, Athena leaves.

Jolie continues to protest, "But Athena!"

Athena, however, has left with the two senior officers. A frustrated Jolie takes a seat on one of the nearby sofas, pulling her knees to her chin.

Conference Room B-188: assembled are General Bright Noah and General Manron Blackhead (commanding officers of the Cislunar Space Armada), Colonel Peter Cairlay of the Special Operations Forces, and Captain Athena Ibaz of the Centurion Special Operations Forces. Also present is Colonel Gopi Pandit of the Side 6 Civil Defense Guard.

Col. Pandit, a regal-looking woman of Indian descent, turns to Bright Noah, "General Noah, if all necessary personnel are assembled, I will brief you on the situation at hand."

General Noah nods courteously, "Yes, Colonel. Since time is of the essence, please begin immediately."

Colonel Pandit begins, "Two months ago, construction personnel from the Colony Development Corporation discovered a fully operable Zeon mobile armor MA-08 Byg Zam hidden in an abandoned Side 6 colony that had been scheduled for rehabilitation. We are certain that this mecha is the second of two Byg Zams produced for the Archduchy of Zeon's space forces during the One Year War. The CDC properly relinquished custody of the mobile armor to the Side 6 CDG, and have kept the mecha impounded at our Celeste MS Station under the supervision of Major Luther Bonham, commanding officer of our MS Battalion."

General Blackhead interrupts Pandit's report, "Excuse me, Colonel. Do you mean that your people had located such a dangerous weapon and did not inform the Federation High Command about it until now? Do you realize that you…"

General Noah cuts Blackhead off, "General Blackhead, please. Let Colonel Pandit finish her report."

Pandit continues, "About three weeks ago, our intelligence personnel discovered that Bonham had been negotiating with the Phobos Zeon Confederation for five billion gold credits from the Phobos Zeon Reserves. We have kept Bonham under surveillance until forty-eight hours ago, when he eluded our surveillance teams and illegally took possession of the Byg Zam."

General Blackhead, not placated, adds with bitter sarcasm, "Your surveillance personnel leave quite a bit to be desired, considering it completely failed to prevent such a dangerous weapon from getting stolen from right under your noses!"

Colonel Pandit, maintaining her composure in the face of Blackhead's withering remarks, replies, "Major Bonham had been the leader of our military surveillance group. It was Major Bonham who created many of the procedures and protocols that our surveillance personnel have used with great effectiveness against Zeon and ISRLA insurgents. It is not at all unusual that Major Bonham was able to foil surveillance measures that he had been personally responsible for putting into place."

"Not unusual," General Noah concedes, "but it has created a serious problem for all of us. But please continue your report, Colonel Pandit."

Pandit does, "Our MS Battalion was placed on high alert, and we have been pursuing the Byg Zam for the past forty-eight hours. Our forces are, however, heavily outgunned by the Byg Zam. All of its weapons systems are online, and we have already lost fifteen mecha over the past two days."

"So you chase him into our backyard," General Blackhead says in disgust, "you Spacenoids certainly know how to…"

"General, that's enough," Bright Noah says sternly, "As this matter has already entered our jurisdiction, we must naturally resolve it."

General Blackhead objects, "I say we should let the Side 6 CDG handle it. This is a problem of their making. Side 6 is an independent state. It should look after its own problems and not leech off of the Federal Forces."

General Noah gives General Blackhead a hard look, then says, "Manron, I've already said that this matter has moved into our territory and therefore, it has become our problem now. The Earth Federation Forces last encountered a Byg Zam during the One Year War. I remember it well. It was during the Battle of Solomon, when the prototype Byg Zam operated by Dozle Zabi inflicted massive casualties upon our forces until it was destroyed by 2Lt. Amuro Ray's RX-78 Gundam."

At the mention of her late father's name, and the infamous battle that had killed him, Athena instinctively takes her handkerchief from its place in the breast pocket of her uniform jacket and uses it to tersely wipe her fingers.

Pausing for a moment to reflect, General Noah then continues, "Presently, we have a new Gundam-class mobile suit undergoing testing. I've been informed that the mobile suit is combat ready, but we have yet to find a suitable pilot for it."

Athena rises, "Sir, if I may?"

"Go ahead, Captain Ibaz," Bright replies.

Athena says, "Sir, we do have a suitable pilot."

Back in the ballroom, the guests at the New Year's/Victory Commemoration Party have long since departed. It is 22:15.

Jolie is thoroughly fed up with waiting for Athena to return. Three hours have passed since Athena disappeared with the senior officers, leaving Jolie to her own devices.

Her stomach growling with hunger, Jolie scouts the cocktail tables and manages to scavenge some leftover oer'deurves, potato chips, and fruit punch.

At 22:20, an entourage of Federal officers passes through the ballroom en rout to offices and command posts. Captain Athena Ibaz is among them.

Athena approaches Jolie and grabs her by the arm, "Jolie, come with me,"

Jolie, a little buzzed by the punch, burps, "But I'm going to be AWOL in ten minutes."

Athena turns to Jolie with an enigmatic grin and she drags her protégée along, "Don't worry, everything's already been cleared."

"What's been cleared?" Jolie blinks in confusion.

Athena turns away again, "Your first taste of blood, kid."

In the spacious office of General Manron Blackhead, the commander of the Earth Federation's Cislunar Space Fleet is speaking furtively with Colonel Peter Cairlay, Director of the Special Operations Forces.

"We've got a serious problem on our hands, colonel," Blackhead says guardedly, "if that rogue Bonham is captured alive and interrogated, then…"

Cairlay doesn't need Blackhead to finish, "I understand, sir. That does seem to be General Noah's intent."

Blackhead grunts with disgust, "Fools such as Bright Noah have turned the Federation into a body of sanctimonious sob sisters. The colonies no longer respect the Federation because they think that we'll tolerate anything and everything those damned Spacenoids do up here. That's why we've had no peace these past twenty years, Cairlay."

There is a tense silence before General Blackhead smiles sinisterly, "Cairlay, each of the Special Forces teams operate independently of the others as a part of standard protocol, correct?"

Cairlay replies, "Yes, sir. Unless they're being coordinated by Federal High Command for a joint operation. We keep their individual operations separate to make it difficult for them to collude against the Federal government. They're too well trained and too well equipped for us to take any chances."

Blackhead puts his hand on Cairlay's shoulder, "Colonel, I have a suggestion…."

23:00 at the MS station of Green Noah Garrison. Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh is being strapped into the RX-780 Gundam 100. Engineering and support crew personnel are giving Jolie some last minute reminders about the capabilities and limitations of her experimental combat mecha before she sorties.

Captain Athena Ibaz, who like Jolie is clad in a Federal Forces MS pilot's normalsuit, gives her protégée some final instructions, "Jolie, be sure to disable to Byg Zam, but don't kill the pilot. We're going to need him for interrogation."

Jolie gives Athena a confident thumbs up, "No problem."

Athena gives Jolie a reassuring smile and a pat on her helmeted head, then departs. The support crew seals the Gundam 100's cockpit hatch.

"No problem at all," Jolie says to herself, gripping the control joysticks of the mobile suit as the combat computer comes online.

The Gundam 100's emerald-lighted eyes flash to life.

Nearby, Athena straps herself into her own mecha, an RGM-95S GM IV Officer's Custom. Both Jolie's Gundam 100 and Athena's GM-IV Custom are lifted onto the launch catapult.

"Captain Athena Ibaz, GM-IV Custom, launching!"

"Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh, Gundam 100, launching!"

In nearby space, Colonel Luther Bonham uses the Byg Zam's multiple hyper beam particle cannon to dispatch Federal Forces MS and fighter spacecraft with impunity. Twenty years have seen great improvements in the Federation's combat spacecraft and mecha, but not enough to overcome the sheer destructive force of a Zeon Byg Zam.

Aboard the Byg Zam, Bonham smirks, "Alex Miguel is going to be mighty pleased to get this baby. She still packs a mean punch."

So saying, Bonham opens fire with the Byg Zam's main gun again, wiping out an approaching _Salamis_ class battlecruiser.

A beeping noise suddenly emits from the Byg Zam's combat computer. It is a warning:

"Unidentified Federal Forces MS closing fast, range 40 km, 2 o'clock position," the computer's synthesized voice intones.

_Must be some new experimental mecha the Federation has,_ Bonham muses.

The Byg Zam's combat computer finds the closest match that it can from its twenty-years outmoded databank, "Enemy target is an unknown model; closest analogue: RX-78 Gundam."

The Byg Zam unleashes a torrent of hellfire into apparently empty space. Suddenly, from seemingly nowhere, Jolie's Gundam 100 appears and rides the wave of destructive energy like a surfer off the California coast.

Jolie levels the Gundam 100's beam rifle at the Byg Zam, scoring direct hits, but doing little damage.

"Jolie," Athena's voice comes through the tactical net, "the Byg Zam is equipped with an I-Field that disrupts beam energy. Use missiles."

Athena's last word of "missiles" barely reaches Jolie's ears before she finds herself dodging a few fired from the Byg Zam's talon-like feet. A shot from the Gundam 100's beam rifle disintegrates one missile, and two quick dodges enable Jolie to avoid the others.

The Byg Zam fires its remaining talon missiles. The Gundam 100 disintegrates a fourth missile with a well-placed beam rifle shot, slashes down a fifth with its beam rifle, and intercepts the sixth with its head-mounted Vulcan cannon.

In the cockpit of the Byg Zam, Bonham begins to realize that his opponent is not to be tarried with. He feels certain that given enough time, he can defeat the enemy's Gundam mobile suit, but possibly not without risking damage to the Byg Zam.

Bonham hits the Byg Zam's afterburners. The giant war mecha blasts away from the scene.

Jolie is not about to let Bonham get away so easily. Engaging the Gundam 100's boosters, she launches in pursuit.

_Persistent, eh?_ Bonham concedes, as he sees the Gundam 100 pursuing on his rear view monitor screen.

Aboard the Gundam-100, Jolie is singularly focused on the target. For the moment, nothing else matters more than destroying the enemy unit.

Responding to the motion of Jolie's trigger finger, the Gundam-100 cuts loose with a firestorm of several dozen missiles. The explosive projectiles strike home on the Byg Zam's main fuselage and engine block, immobilizing the Zeon mobile armor.

Jolie, her bloodlust having completely taken over, screams out, "Die!!" as she draws the Gundam-100's beam saber from its housing and prepares for a lethal stab straight into the Byg Zam's nuclear fusion engine.

Athena, arriving on the scene in her GM-IV Officer's Custom, emits a Newtype spark and shouts with horror, "Jolie, don't!"

Jolie's helmeted head reciprocates Athena's psychic spark.

An instant before the Gundam-100 is to deliver its death blow to the Byg Zam, the Federation mobile suit relents, changing the arc of its beam saber strike to remove the mobile armor's cockpit hatch with surgical precision.

The Gundam-100 reaches into the cockpit nacelle of the Byg Zam and extracts a shellshocked, but otherwise unharmed Luther Bonham.

Athena's GM-IV Custom comes to a rest fifty meters to the right of Jolie's Gundam-100.

Athena beams proudly, "You did it, Jolie! Excellent work!"

Jolie, her bloodlust still yet to be satisfied, backs the Gundam-100 a safe distance away. Sensing what's coming next, Athena does likewise with her mobile suit.

Jolie opens fire with the Gundam-100's entire arsenal: missiles, beam rifle, Vulcan cannon are all simultaneously deployed. The disabled Byg Zam, its I-Field deactivated, succumbs to the multiple strikes and explodes in a hellacious fireball.

"My God...," Athena exhales, witnessing the destructive power of the Gundam-100. She is well aware of the mighty war machine's capabilities, but seeing firsthand the carnage it can unleash in mere instants is nevertheless awe-, and fear-inspiring.

In the cockpit of the Gundam-100, Jolie is perspiring profusely and panting deeply. Her heart is racing like a rocket.

"Jolie, are you all right?" Athena's concerned voice comes through the tactical net.

Jolie takes a moment to gather herself before reply, "Yeah. I'm OK. I just…"

Athena says, "You need to get a full physical when we get back. First, let's get Bonham back to HQ for debriefing."

An hour later, back at Green Noah Garrison, Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh steps out from the cockpit of the RX-780 Gundam-100. She spots Athena running towards her.

Jolie removes her helmet and hands it to Athena, then collapses onto the flight deck.

Athena kneels besides Jolie, "Hey, are you sure you're all right?"

"So tired…" Jolie says, shaking her head to clear out the haze.

Athena says, "You were running on pure adrenalin out there. This is the crash. I'd better get you to sick bay right now."

So saying, Athena helps Jolie to her feet and lets the girl lean on her. A medical team rushes towards them with a stretcher and various medical field equipment.

"I'll be OK," Jolie says weakly, but alertly, "What about Bonham?"

"Let me worry about that," Athena replies, "you let the medics take you for a check up. We'll discuss everything else later."

Shortly afterwards, in a prisoner detention center somewhere in Green Noah Garrison, Colonel Luther Bonham, formerly of the Side 6 Civil Defense Guard, sits bruised and bloodied in a dark interrogation room. He has been roughed up by Federal Forces military police and Special Forces personnel attempting to get information out of him. A veteran intelligence and special ops officer himself, Bonham is a tough nut to crack. Neither threats nor acts of violence against his person have budged him to divulge any information of value to the Federation.

Athena arrives in the interrogation room and is saluted by the Federal MPs and Special Forces officers present.

Crouching in front of Bonham, Athena removes the ever-present handkerchief from the breast pocket of her uniform jacket and uses it to dab gently on the cuts and bruises of Bonham's face.

Bonham grins, "I suppose you're the 'good cop' in this little interrogation game, eh? I'll give the Federation credit: it certainly picks beautiful women for the job. You might even soften me up enough to get more than just my rank and serial number, honey."

Ignoring Bonham's remarks, Athena deliberately repockets the handkerchief, grins coldly, and pulls Bonham roughly towards her by the collar of his uniform.

Leaning her face closely into Bonham's gaze, Athena says softly, but menacingly to the man, "Your problem is that you're expendable. You're expendable to us, you're expendable to the Side 6 CDG comrades you've betrayed, and you're certainly expendable to whoever paid you to steal that Byg Zam."

Bonham doesn't flinch, and replies, "If I'm so expendable, why'd you bother to bring me back here for the royal treatment? You could have let that Gundam of yours turn me to space dust with the Byg Zam."

Athena grins, releasing her grip on Bonham's collar and turning her back to him, "It's not our policy to kill our POWs. It's also not our policy to protect them from the consequences of their own choices."

"Protect?" Bonham says quizzically, unable to guess at Athena's meaning.

After a brief moment's silence, Athena continues, "We know you were planning to sell that mobile armor to someone, Colonel. A weapon of mass destruction such as a Byg Zam offers a tactical advantage that any military force would pay any sum to acquire, provided it has the necessary funds."

"So?" Bonham smirks.

Athena says, "There aren't too many buyers who can afford a weapon such as a Byg Zam, Colonel. We hardly need you to tell us. That's why we're letting you go."

Bonham was not expecting that, "You're setting me free?"

Athena affirms Bonham's question with a gesture.

Bonham laughs, "You must think I'm stupid! You probably expect me to make contact with these mecha buyers you're dreaming up, and you want to let me go just so you can follow me to them! Forget it! I stole the Byg Zam for my own reasons!"

"Whether or not you did is moot now, Colonel," says Athena dispassionately, "we have enemies to eliminate, so we're not wasting any more time with you."

"So you're going to kill me now?" Bonham replies defiantly.

"No," Athena replies frigidly, "we're going to let YOUR enemies do it for us."

Athena turns to one of the MPs, "Sergeant, please undo Colonel Bonham's restraints, then order up a space shuttle to transport the colonel home."

The Federal Forces MP loosens Bonham's arm restraints, as Athena instructed. A second MP opens the door of the interrogation room.

Bonham, uncertain what manner of trick the Federal Forces have in mind, does not leave through the door, but stands staring at Athena.

Without leaving the chair where she had taken a seat, or turning to look at Bonham, Athena says, "Best regards to Josephine and Jason."

Bonham stiffens, his heart pounding. Josephine is the name of his paramour, and Jason the illegitimate son he sired with her. But how could anyone know about Josephine and Jason? Even Bonham's closest associates in the Side 6 CDG don't know about Josephine and Jason!

"Josephine Martin," Athena says, "Aged twenty-eight. Lives at 1398 Meadowview Drive in Colony 11, Bunch 18 of Side 6. Miss Martin works for a tourism agency based in Colony 11. She has one son, Jason, despite being unmarried..."

"How...how could you possibly...?" Bonham begins.

"You work in intelligence yourself," Athena says coldly, "you should realize that there are no real secrets."

Bonham bares his teeth at Athena, "If you hurt them..."

Athena cuts him off, "If we were able to identify them, so too are the people you were planning to sell the Byg Zam to."

Bonham pales in the realization that Athena is right.

When he finds his voice, Bonham says plaintively, "If I agree to give you the information you want, you'll protect them?"

Athena grins, "That depends on the quality of the information you give me."

Bonham is about to say something more when footsteps are heard approaching from the corridor outside the interrogation room. Colonel Cairlay appears at the door.

"Captain Ibaz," the colonel says, "thank you for all the work that you've done today. High Command has instructed that I personally continue the interrogation of Colonel Bonham. You may be dismissed to return to your unit. The base infirmary has sent word that Chief Warrant Officer Minh has been given a clean bill of health and is waiting for you presently."

Athena finds it very strange that the High Command would send Colonel Cairlay to interrupt what has been a very successful interrogation of the enemy agent, but knows better than to protest. Something is definitely awry, but Athena understands that getting to the root of it would need to be done elsewhere, at another time.

"Yes, sir," Athena salutes and leaves the room.

Colonel Cairlay approaches Bonham. Bonham senses the other man's sinister intent.

Cairlay says with a disquieting coolness, "Colonel Bonham, we're sending you back to Side 6 to be prosecuted according to the laws of your nation."

_That_ was unexpected.

"What about the protection that Captain Ibaz offered to my...family?" Bonham says.

Cairlay lights a cigar and puffs a ring of smoke before answering Bonham, "Your family will be taken care of. You, however, will face the consequences of your involvement in this matter."

Athena rendezvous with Jolie in the lobby of the base infirmary. Jolie bounds to her feet and sprints towards Athena, demonstrating that her first combat sortie has left her no worse for the experience.

"You certainly look better," Athena remarks.

Jolie flexes her arms in a mock gesture of strength, then takes a bite out of the candy bar that she had gotten from one of the infirmary canteen's vending machines, "Nothing that a little sugar can't cure. The doctors said I just had…"

"Combat stress fatigue," Athena finishes, "I know. It happens to many rookies. You're going to need to learn to pace yourself. War isn't like street-fighting. It's an endurance grind."

Much to Athena's horror, Jolie swallows the rest of the six-inch candy bar in one bite.

While chewing, the teenager asks, "So how'd the interrogation with Bonham go? Find out anything useful?"

Athena says, "Colonel Cairlay has taken over. He came just about when I had Bonham ready to talk."

"That creep?" Jolie says, "If I were Bonham, I'd demand to have you back before I'd say anything."

Athena escorts Jolie back to her quarters in the officers' academy. As they walk, Athena is still disturbed by the strange ending of her interrogation of Luther Bonham.

Soon, the duo is at the door of Jolie's quarters. Athena tells her charge, "As of next week, you'll be officially part of my unit. I'll stop by after my shift tomorrow to help you pack up for the move into the Centurion Team's barracks."

"Am I going to get a private room with air conditioning and satellite TV?" Jolie asks.

Athena grins, "After bringing down that Byg Zam tonight, maybe they'll rename the base after you. See you tomorrow."

Athena and Jolie go their separate ways for the evening. For Jolie, it's off to a good night's sleep after her first battle as a mobile suit pilot for the Earth Federation Forces. For Athena, it's another visit back to the Special Forces Headquarters compound. She can't sleep; not with the disturbing thoughts now churning in her head.

_I have this terrible feeling that Luther Bonham is a dead man._ Athena thinks to herself.

Athena returns to Special Forces HQ. She encounters Colonel Cairlay outside his office.

"Why Captain," Cairlay says languidly, "I thought you would have retired for evening."

"Sir," Athena salutes her superior, "I returned to see if my help was still needed for the interrogation of Luther Bonham."

"That interrogation is done, Captain," replies Cairlay, "Bonham was extremely stubborn. He refused to tell us anything of value. We've therefore given custody of him back to the Side 6 CDG. They will deal with him now and share with us whatever information they can get out of him."

Athena finds that strange. It is not the Federation's standard policy to turn over captured enemy combatants to other parties. Granted, the Federation and Side 6 had benign diplomatic relations, but this represents a major departure from standard procedure.

"In that case, sir," Athena says, "I will return to quarters."

"See you in the morning, Captain," says Cairlay, returning Athena's salute.

Meanwhile, the Side 6 Civil Defense Guard's RGM-89 GM-III squadron under the command of Captain Huisook Song is returning to Side 6 with a prisoner. Colonel Luther Bonham rides inside a smaller prisoner capsule carried in the hand of one of the mobile suits.

The journey back to Side 6 from Side 7 proceeds without incident until one of Song's subordinates reports that a flight of MS, Federal Forces types, is approaching fast. The Federal Forces MS are putting out powerful Minovsky particle jamming waves, which make them invisible to the radar aboard the mobile suits in Song's units.

Captain Song remarks, "Nothing out of the ordinary. Just a patrol unit. Maybe they're here to escort us out of Federation space."

The squad of Earth Federation Forces mobile suits, ten RGM-95C GM-IV Snipers, open fire with their beam cannon and rifles at the Side 6 C.D.G. squad. Before the Side 6 mobile suits have the chance to react, they are reduced to melting scrap. The first target destroyed is Luther Bonham's prisoner capsule, its inhabitant immolated in an instant.

General Manron Blackhead's office: the general has a visitor, who is seen in the shadows only. His silhouette is vaguely familiar.

An aide enters and whispers something into Blackhead's ear. The Federal Forces general smiles.

"We couldn't secure the Byg Zam, Colonel," says Blackhead, "but we have managed to plug an imminent information leak. Please send General Miguel our deepest apologies."

The general's visitor emerges from the shadows. He is Colonel Ross Davenport, right-hand man of the infamous General Alexander Miguel of the Phobos Zeon Confederacy.

Six hours later, Captain Athena Ibaz is flying a routine patrol of Side 7 space aboard her RGM-95S GM-IV Officer's Custom. Her mobile suit's surveillance equipment has detected an unusually high concentration of Minoffsky particle interference.

The area of Minoffsky concentration is littered with scraps of metallic scrap. This, in itself, is not unusual. Since the era of space colonization began, Cislunar Space has been cluttered with both industrial waste and the ruins of war.

To the untrained eye, the scrap would be unidentifiable. Athena, however, recognizes the scrap for what it is: the remains of mobile suits.

Athena stops her mobile suit and opens the cockpit hatch, exiting her mecha for a closer inspection. Using her normalsuit's vectoring thrusters, she maneuvers amidst the wreckage searching for useful information.

A piece of mass, too pliable to be mobile suit wreckage, drifts towards Athena. It appears to be a normalsuit...or at least half a normalsuit. A powerful explosion must have sundered its top half from its bottom.

To Athena's horror, the normalsuit remains are not empty; half of a dead human torso and head occupy the torn spacesuit.

Athena maneuvers herself over to the gruesome sight, and takes hold of the half-corpse. Steeling herself, she opens the visor of the slain pilot's helmet.

She is greeted with the dead face of Colonel Luther Bonham of the Side 6 Civil Defense Guard, his eyes still open in an expression of profound shock and betrayal.

Athena's gloved hand brushes across Bonham's eyes, closing them forever. Athena's hand closes into an angry, trembling fist.

At the same time, in Side 6, a trenchcoated man sets fire to an apartment complex in a normally quiet neighborhood. Within minutes, the building is engulfed in flames, incinerating, among other things, the corpses of a young woman and her seven-year old son, who had both been fatally shot just moments earlier.

"You're quiet tonight," Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh says to Athena ten hours later, as the two share drinks and cigarettes at an officer's club.

Not replying to Jolie's remark, Athena stubs out her exhausted cigarette, her fifth of the hour, into an ashtray and takes another sip of brandy, her third.

"Maybe you're the one with combat stress fatigue now," Jolie says, inserting a fresh cigarette between her lips.

Athena lights Jolie's cigarette, and then lights a fresh one of her own.

"There are no innocents in war," Athena finally sighs, her first words in nearly an hour, "Until we are ourselves killed, we live to kill, and will kill to live. Luther Bonham understood that. You have to wonder if it made things any easier for him to accept in the end."

Jolie exhales a lungful of heated tobacco fumes, then says, "Forget it, Athena. I know you think that you're to blame for how Bonham got dusted, but it was just his fate."

Athena offers Jolie a wan grin, "You're quick in getting accustomed to this predator-prey lifestyle I've introduced you to."

Jolie returns the grin, "You didn't introduce me to it. You just got me onto a whole new level of it. I was already a bad girl when you came and got me out of Industria all those months ago."

Athena lifts her glass to Jolie, "Here's to us, then: two bad girls. We drink, we smoke, and we kill people."

The pair toast each other, drink, and laugh. Two bad girls, just beginning to make their mark on history.


	5. Chapter 5: THE WHITE PHOENIX

EPISODE 5: WHITE PHOENIX

_Too much of military life is bureaucratic nonsense,_ Captain Athena Ibaz muses to herself as she inputs a metaphorical mound of documentation into the Federal Forces' central databank. The aftermath of the Luther Bonham affair has entailed no small amount of documentation work, and has more or less chained Athena to her office desk for the better part of the day.

Ever conscious of time, Athena glances at the Baroque clock on her office wall: 12:17.

_Late,_ Athena quietly fumes.

As if on cue, Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh bursts into Athena's office, just a bit out of breath.

"Thanks for knocking first," Athena says dryly, still not looking up from her deskwork.

"Sorry," Jolie replies, both for her tardiness and her forgetting to knock…again, "I was in the bathroom and I was really constip…"

"Never mind," Athena cuts Jolie off, entirely uninterested in Jolie's lavatory habits, "are you ready to meet the rest of the squad now?"

Jolie salutes, "Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh, Centurion Team, reporting for duty, ma'am!"

Athena grins, finally rising from her seat to return Jolie's salute, "Welcome to the Centurion Team, Chief Minh."

In the lounge of the Centurion Team's barracks, commanding officer Captain Athena Ibaz introduces her team to their new junior executive officer, Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh. The members of the Centurion Team are…

Master Sergeant Karim Abdul Al-Said. Originally from Sudan on Earth, Master Sergeant Al-Said immigrated to Side 5 with his family when he was a boy. Steadfast, coolheaded, reliable, and brave, he is the ranking NCO (non-commissioned officer) in the Centurion Team. At age 24, he is also the oldest member of the team. Master Sergeant Al-Said is a munitions and artillery expert. He pilots the long-range artillery mobile suit RGC-770 Guncannon-100.

Staff Sergeant Tomo Higashi. Staff Sergeant Higashi, a 19-year old of Japanese descent, hails from Side 7. Like his good friend, Master Sergeant Al-Said, he is a man of rock solid loyalty and courage, and also like the master sergeant, Higashi pilots an RC-770 Guncannon-100.

Corporal Karyn Luna: At age 16, a few months younger than Jolie, Karyn is the youngest member of the Centurion Team. A native of the Hawaiian Islands on Earth, she is the daughter of a minor Earth Federation Government politician. Her father, a fervent Earthist, has sent his daughter to be trained as a member of the Special Forces to toughen her up. Karyn tends to be a bit naïve, but she does not lack in courage. Karyn pilots an RGM-95 GM-IV.

Corporal Anna Horowitz: Aged 20. She is the Centurion Team's intelligence and reconnaissance specialist. A quiet and mysterious young woman, Anna pilots a RGM-95AW GM AWAC.

Corporal Geoff Sutcliffe: Aged 19. A native of Londinium space colony, Sutcliffe is the team's resident practical joker and ladies man. His bravery outstrips his mobile suit piloting skills, but he is still a solid pilot of an RGM-95 GM-IV.

Responding to their training, the Centurion Team members line up smartly and salute as Athena enters the room with Jolie, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am!"

"At ease," Athena tells her charges, "As of today, the Centurion Team has been assigned a new junior executive officer. She will serve as my personal adjutant and second-in-command of the team. Ladies and gentlemen, please meet Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh."

The team salutes in unison, "Chief Minh, ma'am!"

Jolie is a bit taken aback by the welcome. She has never been addressed as "ma'am" in her life, and she hasn't led anything more impressive than a girls' softball team back in elementary school before her family was killed.

Jolie turns to Athena, who gives her an encouraging nod. Jolie turns to the team, "At ease, and thanks."

The team members look at Jolie with some awe. They know that this is the young woman who recovered the Gundam-100 from ISRLA guerillas several months ago, after their original commanding officer, Captain Rick Tinne, had been killed during the same operation. They also know that Jolie is the pilot who recently destroyed a stolen Zeon Byg Zam mecha.

The men of the Centurion Team have a different kind of interest in Jolie, however. Their dreamy grins and wide eyes reflecting their admiration for Jolie's very pleasing silky-smooth babyface...her wide, dazzling eyes...her long, luscious black hair... and her gorgeous, shapely legs, which are especially flattered by the short cut of her uniform miniskirt.

"I think I'm in love, mate," Geoff Sutcliffe whispers to Tomo Higashi.

"Get in line, Britboy," Tomo whispers back, "I got first dibs on the hottie CWO."

Geoff whispers back, "Dude, Tomo. I can't decide if the Captain or the Chief is the hotter piece of ass!"

Tomo replies breathlessly, "Me neither. We really drew a plum assignment getting on the team with all the hot babes."

"Let's show a little respect, gentlemen," the more serious Karim cuts in, but it's evident that even the sober-minded (and engaged) master sergeant finds the new CWO highly attractive.

Athena notes her team's reactions to Jolie and grins, recalling how she'd received a similar welcome when she was first assigned to the team months ago.

Geoff Sutcliffe, who is not only the team's ladies' man, but who also fancies himself an excellent fighter (and indeed, he is an above-average hand-to-hand combatant), has read the reports about Jolie's extraordinary fighting prowess like everybody else has. He just doesn't believe, however, that the cute, tiny Asian chick who has just been assigned the team's junior XO could be any kind of superb fighter.

Looking to satisfy his curiosity, and to burnish his ego, Geoff extends his hand to Jolie, "Corporal Geoff Sutcliffe at your command, ma'am."

Geoffe takes Jolie's small, soft hand into his own, _Hah! Girly, just like I thought. Now let me apply just a little pressure here...whuh?_

Sensing Geoff's attempt to twist her wrist, Jolie allows her wrist to yield, then twists it in the opposite direction with a single, fluid motion, sending Geoff to the ground.

Geoff rises, surprise evident on his face.

"Let's dance," Jolie says in a challenging tone.

Geoff lunges at Jolie in a grabbing motion; his belly meets with Jolie's knee, knocking the breath out of him.

Jolie rubs her bare knee, "Ow. You're put together pretty solidly, Corporal. Too bad you're about as fast as a rock too."

Geoff, not accustomed to being bested by a woman, is ready to remove the kids' gloves, "All right, luv. Now you're going to get it!"

Geoff's series of punches sail harmlessly through empty spaces where Jolie's face had been fractions of a second earlier. After a minute of this, Jolie senses Geoff's strength fading, guides his last punch aside with an elegant sweeping motion of her palm, and slaps him three times in rapid succession.

Jolie ends it with a lightning quick punch that sends Geoff onto his back.

"That was a good workout, Corporal," Jolie says with a grin, "we should do it again."

The rest of the Centurion Team cannot contain their laughter, and even Geoff, rising from the ground, cannot help but laugh, "You're really something, Chief."

"Jolie," says the junior XO, "at least when we're off duty."

Athena, who had ducked into her office to make a few phone calls while all this had been going on, reappears in the lounge, "Jolie, would you please come into my office? There are some things I'd like to show you."

"Later," Jolie tells her new teammates, who have already taken a great liking to her.

Athena asks Jolie to have a seat and offers her a drink: whiskey on the rocks.

"So," Athena asks, pouring a second glass of whiskey for herself, "how do you like the team?"

"I think Sutcliffe and I are going to be really great friends," Jolie remarks, sipping the whiskey.

Athena grins, "That's one guy to keep in front of you at all times. The first day I was in the unit, he tried to reach up my skirt."

Jolie asks, "What did you do?"

Athena replies as she sips the whiskey, "Kneed him in the balls. It took him about fifteen minutes to find his voice again."

Jolie almost chokes on the whiskey, "So what did you ask me in here for?"

Without replying, Athena steps over to the large bookshelf occupying an entire wall of her office. From this, she draws over a dozen hardcover books. She hands these to Jolie.

"What's all this?" asks Jolie, taking the heavy load of tomes from Athena's hands.

Among the titles that Athena has given to Jolie are Plato's _The Republic_, Machiavelli's _The Prince_, Milton's _Paradise Lost_, Shakespeare's _Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth, Othello,_ and _Julius Caesar_, Franklin's _Autobiography_, Marx's _Communist Manifesto_, a collection of writings by Abraham Lincoln, Hitler's _Mein Kampf_, Mahatma Gandhi's _My Experiments With Truth_, Freud's _Psychoanalytic Theory_, LaRoque's _A History of the World From Early Civilizations to the Colonization of Space_, Zeon Daikun's _Humanity Beyond the Horizon_, General Abraham Reville's _The State of Military Strategy in the U.C. 0070s_, Amuro Ray's _Reflections Upon the One Year War_, and assorted other texts relating to sciences and mathematics.

Athena grins as Jolie juggles the books around, trying to get a grip upon them, "You've missed out on much of your education during the past five years, Jolie. There are many things you'll need to know before you can truly be effective in helping me. You can't change a world that you don't understand. That's why I want you to read all of these books."

Jolie makes a wry face, "Couldn't you at least have given these to me on a Datachip? This isn't the Middle Ages, you know?"

"Good hardcover books are worth their weight in gold these days, Jolie," Athena tells her new junior executive officer.

"Yeah, well 'weight' is certainly the word," Jolie replies, setting the heavy books down on the couch in Athena's office, "so is there going to be a test, or something?"

"The only tests that matter, Jolie, are the ones you'll face out there," Athena replies, with a slight pointing gesture to the world beyond her office door, "There's much more to being a successful officer than being able to pilot mobile suits and handle weapons. You'll need to know some of everything, and be able to do a bit of everything."

As Jolie frowns at the books, Athena looks through Jolie's personnel file on her palm Datareader, "Jolie 'Phuong' Minh. 'Phuong' is Vietnamese for 'phoenix,' isn't it, Jolie?"

"Yeah, that's my Vietnamese name," Jolie replies, surprised that Athena knows the word's meaning, "I didn't know you could understand Vietnamese."

Athena grins, "I actually, don't, but I do understand Chinese, and Vietnamese is a related language. Your name sounded similar to the Chinese word for 'phoenix,' 'feng,' so I just guessed that was it. 'Phoenix' Minh...the ancient Greeks believed that the phoenix represented rebirth."

Jolie shrugs, "I didn't know it represented anything."

"In a way," Athena says, "the name was prophetic. You've kind of been 'reborn,' in a manner of speaking."

"Yeah," Jolie remarks wryly, "reborn as your contract killer."

To that, Athena's response is to take an envelope from her desk drawer and hand it to Jolie.

"What's this?" Jolie asks.

Taking her handkerchief from its place in her breast pocket, Athena replies, "Your first paycheck, my dear mercenary."

As Athena begins wiping her fingers tersely with the handkerchief, Jolie opens the envelope. Her eyes widen at the figure on the check.

"Two-thousand credits?"

"You'll earn more after you're promoted," Athena says.

"No," Jolie says, looking for the right words, "it's just that. Wow. I've never had this much money before. I used to have to risk my neck just for some loose change back in Industria."

Athena smiles, repocketing her handkerchief, "Well, now you risk your neck for about two-thousand credits a month."

"...and a shot at Alexander Miguel's head?" Jolie says, turning serious.

Athena exhales after a moment's uncomfortable silence, "Like I told you before: we'll have our day of reckoning with the Zeon, sooner or later."

"'Sooner' can't come soon enough," Jolie grates.

Athena offers Jolie a cigarette and lights it for her, then lights one of her own, "Anyway, I've provided you with the books I want you to read, but you don't have to finish them right away. Right now, I think it's better if you got better acquainted with your squad mates. You and the rest of the squad are dismissed until reveille at 0400 tomorrow."

"Great!" Jolie enthuses, her good mood returning, as she takes her books and her paycheck with her.

"Jolie..." Athena says before Jolie can get out the door.

"Yeah, what is it 'Thena?" Jolie replies, pausing.

Athena grins at her charge, "Don't spend your entire paycheck partying, all right? You don't get another one for a month, and YOU'RE buying the next round of drinks at the Officer's Club."

Some 5,000 kilometers out from Side 7's zone marker, Earthside, a convoy of Federation supply ships is on approach to Green Noah Garrison from its launch point in Florida on Earth. Various civilian and military supplies are being ferried to Side 7 from Earth, and the cargo includes a myriad of goods ranging from nourishment formula for infants to ammunition for weapons. The convoy even includes a shipment of mobile suit replacement parts.

As such, the convoy is heavily guarded: its escort includes two _Salamis_-class battle cruisers and nine mobile suits (RGM-89 Jegans) divided into three squads.

Captain Ilongo N'Gula, commanding officer of the Federal Armada ship _Moonshadow_, sends a transmission to Garrison Noah, "Garrison Noah, this is E.F.S.S. _Moonshadow_, registry EF6243235, on approach from Canaveral Point. Awaiting authorization for approach with supply convoy from Earth."

The answer from Garrison Noah comes momentarily, "Affirmative, _Moonshadow_, convoy and escort are cleared for approach."

The arrival of the convoy proceeds seemingly undisturbed. Captain N'Gula feels that perhaps he could begin to relax.

But his day was to take a dramatic turn.

About ten kilometers away from the convoy, a squad of five mobile suits lies in wait, hidden from both the convoy's surveillance equipment and Garrison Noah's tracking devices by a thick field of Minovsky particles. Four of the five mobile suits are about a decade old: two are RMS-108 Marasais used by the Federation's Titans Corps during the U.C. 0080s, and the other two are MMT-1 Gaza C's, which were the first new production line mobile suits to be used by the Axis Neo Zeon Forces during their invasion of Cislunar Space in U.C. 0088. These mecha, although now obsolete, were considered cutting-edge weaponry in their day, and as such, still command a hefty price on the black market. The leaders of the ISRLA would not authorize their deployment unless absolutely necessary for the success of its ultimate goals.

The fifth mobile suit, however, is the gem of the squad: an MSN-03 Jagd Doga from the days of Colonel Char Aznable's final rebellion in U.C. 0093. This mobile suit, recovered from storage aboard a Neo Zeon space cruiser that had escaped from Axis Fortress shortly before the defeat of Colonel Char, has been dedicatedly maintained and is in rollout condition. Within its cockpit sits its pilot, the Newtype Caitlin O'Rourke, aged 25.

Caitlin O'Rourke had been a 21-year old graduate of the Neo Zeon military academy when the final confrontation between Colonel Char's Neo Zeon forces and the Earth Federation Forces' Lond Bell Corps broke out in the spring of U.C. 0093. 2Lt. O'Rourke, whom the Flannagan Research Agency had identified as a Class-1 Newtype (whose illustrious lineage included Colonel Char himself, Lalah Sun, Haman Karn, and the Federation and AEUG mobile suit aces Amuro Ray, Camille Vidan, and Judau Ashta), but at the time of Colonel Char's demise, 2Lt. O'Rouke's training had not yet been completed and she was not deployed into battle until the outcome of the battle had already been determined. Until Colonel Char had discovered the advanced Newtype Quess Parayana and selected Quess to pilot the mobile armor NZ-333 Alpha Azieru, Caitlin had been at the top of a list of candidates (along with Gurney Guss) to pilot the mammoth mecha against the Federal Forces. With the demise of the Neo Zeon Archduchy following the loss of the Colonel Char, Caitlin O'Rourke drifted purposely for a while. A ward of the Neo Zeon state, without family or close friends, Caitlin finally hooked up with Dr. Artasia Som Daikun's Independent Spacenoid Republic movement in U.C. 0095. Knowing of Caitlin's abilities, the ISRLA has continued Caitlin's training and development, deploying her only on missions of top priority.

Hence, her assignment to the capture of this convoy.

"2Lt. O'Rourke," one of the ISRLA pilots "suited" in a Gaza-C reports, "the convoy has begun its approach towards Garrison Noah."

Caitlin acknowledges that information with hissing eagerness, "Excellent. They'll be entering the Minovsky field soon, making them momentarily undetectable by Garrison Noah's surveillance mechanisms. That's when we'll strike."

"Lieutenant," the same Gaza-C pilot, a young man by the name of Evanhart ventures, "do you think it's true what our intelligence people said about this convoy's cargo?"

Caitlin checks her Jagd Doga's surveillance gear, in particular its radiation tracer, "If so, the Federation's hiding it well. In any case, we must make sure this cargo does not reach its destination. It could be a disaster for our people."

A chorus of "Yes ma'ams" affirm Caitlin's orders as her team prepares to swoop in.

Back at the Centurion Team's residence compound, a fierce verbal confrontation escalates.

"I say that the new XO is hotter," Corporal Geoffe Sutcliffe insists for the umpteenth time, "That Jolie's eyes are like pure electricity, mate. And her legs...oh!"

"She is cute," Tomo Higashi concedes, "but she's just a kid, man. Now Captain Ibaz: that's a _real_ woman. If the Captain weren't our CO, I'd seriously date her." 

Geoffe says, "Captain Ibaz is definitely a dish, but c'mon, isn't she just a bit too intimidating with that upper crust attitude of hers? I'd be scared to date her 'cause she's just too posh. Athena's a cutie, yeah, but she's too uptight and serious to be fun to be with; she never lets her hair down."

"Well, her hair is shorter than Jolie's," Tomo grins, "but I have a thing for redheads myself."

"Just let us know when you've determined which one of us is more attractive," Athena's velvety voice suddenly cuts in.

"Captain Ibaz! Chief Minh! Ma'am!" Sutcliffe and Higashi burst to their feet and salute nervously. The rest of the team giggles at their discomfort. 

"High command has detected some irregularities near the supply convoy," Athena tells her team seriously, "we've been ordered to escort the convoy in. I want you all to suit up and report to the MS deck immediately."

"Yes, ma'am!" the Centurions salute as one.

Cait O'Rourke's Jagd Doga and its attendant squad of Gaza-Cs continued to shadow the Earth Federation Forces convoy, its presence hidden from the convoy and its defenders by Minovsky particle interference.

"All right," Cait instructs her team through an encoded signal, "on my mark: STRIKE!"

In a shockingly abrupt, but intricately coordinated maneuver that had been practiced hundreds of times before, the small ISRLA mobile suit squadron launches its attack. Twin blasts from the missile packs of two Gaza-Cs quickly immolate the bridges of the two _Salamis_ battleship escorts, leaving the two heavily armed ships incapacitated.

"Code Red! Code Red!" shouts 2Lt. Xiang Lu, commanding officer of the Jegan mobile suit escort, "Convoy is under attack by unidentified targets. All units form defensive perimeter!"

Reacting to 2Lt. Lu's orders, the Jegans form a defensive circle around the _Moonshadow_. 

"Second phase," Cait O'Rourke grimly orders her squad.

The two Marasais, which carry between them a powerful Hyperbazooka particle cannon, charge the massive WMD powered by the twin mobile suits' nuclear fusion battery packs. The Marasais take aim at the crippled _Salamis_ closest to the _Moonshadow_ and its Jegan escort.

"We have a lock on the enemy ship's nuclear fusion engine," reports Carney, the pilot of one of the two Marasais.

"Fire at will," Cait replies.

Electromagnetically charged hellfire erupts forth from the muzzle of the massive Hyperbazooka particle cannon. The brilliant light of the beam is the brightest object in local space for a moment, until the explosion of the _Salamis'_ nuclear fusion engine overwhelms even its extreme luminosity.

The shockwave of the nuclear explosion within such proximity throws the Federation mobile suits like rag dolls in a hurricane. Several Jegans collide, the force of impact causing them to fragment. The shockwave alone damages several more.

Aboard the _Moonshadow_, Captain N'Gula and his crew grit their teeth and brace themselves as the shockwave of the explosion rocks their ship. Despite the _Moonshadow_'s great mass (twice that of a _Salamis_-class battle cruiser) and extra thick armor, the great cargo ship is buffeted helplessly by the tremendous force unleashed by its escort ship's explosion.

Captain N'Gula manages to snarl out, "Damage report!"

A crewman replies, "Sorry, sir. All systems except emergency life support are offline."

Captain N'Gula performs the only check he can without the benefit of the ship's computer and internal communications systems. Floating over to one of the bridge's windows, he takes in a visual assessment of the damage.

Decks 1-11 on the ship's port side had taken severe damage; that portion of the ship looked like it had been stricken by a comet. The damaged decks included crew quarters, peripheral navigational systems, and a few of the less important storage areas.

_Fortunately_, Captain N'Gula reflects, _that hit did not, as far as I can tell from here, penetrate the reinforced inner cargo hold. If it had..._

The captain shudders at the terrible thought of what could have happened, and his fears escalate as he remembers that it could yet happen if there were to be a follow up strike.

"Sir," a tech replies, "communications are out. I can't contact the escort squadron or Garrison Noah. We're a sitting duck, sir."

N'Gula figured as much. For the moment, he, his crew, his ship, and its precious cargo was at the mercy of whomever it was that had attacked them.

Carney surveys the damage and reports to his commanding officer, Caitlin O'Rourke, "Ma'am, confirming that the enemy escort squadron has been eliminated. Primary objective has also been disabled."

"Excellent," Caitlin replies, "Third Phase!"

With that command, the Caitlin's Jagd Doga and the four mobile suits under her command extend long metallic cables from nacelles within the mecha's fuselages. These magnetically-charged cables attach themselves to the hull of the _Moonshadow_.

"Primary objective secured, ma'am," Carney reports.

Caitlin tells her squad, "Attention all units. We have what we came for. Let's go."

In the MS deck of Garrison Noah, the Centurion Team is sprinting towards its mobile suits.

Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh pulls on her helmet and seals the O-ring of her normalsuit as she leaps into the cockpit of the RX-780, now designated the **Centurion Gundam**.

The other Centurion Team pilots also board their mobile suits, RGM-95 GM-IVs and, in the case of artillery specialists Al-Said and Higashi, RGC-100 Guncannon-100s.

Captain Athena Ibaz boards her newly delivered commanding officer's mobile suit, the RZS-100S Cour De Leon, a new prototype mobile suit designed for eventual assignment to all Earth Federation Special Forces commanding officers. The Cour De Leon is a transformable mobile suit, inspired by the AEUG's MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam and the Federation's own Re-GZ mobile suit combined with elements of the MSN-00100 Hyakushiki famously used by Char Aznable during his time as AEUG leader Quattro Bagina during the Gryps Conflict.

Athena opens the communications channel to her teammates, "This is Centurion Leader to all units. The Federation supply ship _Moonshadow_ is under attack by unidentified hostiles in Sector T45. We will deploy to rescue the supply ship. Remember: rescuing supply ship and personnel is your top priority, not engaging the enemy, understood?"

A chorus of "Yes, ma'ams" comes through tactical net. To Athena's disturbance, Jolie's voice is not among those she heard.

"Chief Minh, do you copy?" Athena demands.

"Roger that, ma'am," Jolie's voice comes reluctantly.

Athena has no doubts about Jolie's skills, but the girl's judgment is an entirely different matter. What concerns Athena is not Jolie's battle instincts, which are the sharpest Athena has ever seen, but rather Jolie's ability to see the overall, larger goals.

That, however, is a consideration for a quieter moment if they live to see one. For now, there is the duty at hand.

"Centurion Team, let's move out!" Athena commands.

Caitlin O'Rourke has boarded the Federation supply ship _Moonshadow_. Pointing her sidearm at Captain Ilongo N'Gula, Caitlin makes her demands known.

"I require your ship and its cargo, not your lives," Caitlin tells Captain N'Gula and his crew, "After we have secured our objective, I will release you and your crew. If you resist us, however, I won't hesitate to kill all of you."

Captain N'Gula responds, "You won't get away with this. Even if you kill the entire crew, the Federal Forces will not let you escape with this ship and its cargo. They'll destroy the ship if they have to prevent you from getting it."

Caitlin smiles mysteriously, "Not this ship...not with the cargo in its hold."

The crewmen of the _Moonshadow_ are mystified by Caitlin's remark. The _Moonshadow_ was indeed carrying vital supplies from Earth to Side 7, including mobile suit parts and armaments that the ISRLA would find useful. Furthermore, true to Captain N'Gula's remarks, the Federation would consider the ship, its cargo, and its crew expendable if the ISRLA were to seize them. The ISRLA terrorist's remark represented an empty threat.

But was it? Captain N'Gula's face blanched the moment that the ISRLA rebel leader mentioned the ship's cargo.

"I wouldn't count on the Federal Forces coming to your rescue, Captain," Caitlin says to N'Gula, "My guess is that at this very moment, Federal High Command is probably scheming of ways to move us as far away from any inhabited space colony as possible."

N'Gula swallows, unable to speak. If the enemy knew what the _Moonshadow_ carried in its cargo hold, and was willing to exploit it, the day would end in disaster.

"Anna, are you getting anything on your sensors?" Athena asks from the cockpit of her Cour De Leon.

"Not yet ma'am," Corporal Anna Horowitz answers, "this is where the _Moonshadow_ was last heard from, but there's not a trace of her here now."

From the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, Jolie spots pieces of metallic debris, "There was definitely a firefight here. This must have been the _Moonshadow_'s escort squad."

Athena magnifies the image of the debris on her scanner, confirming Jolie's observation, "This is Jegan wreckage...no sign of enemy debris. The escort squad was routed."

Jolie remarks, "Looks like the enemy hijacked the _Moonshadow_...probably for supplies."

Athena reflects upon that, "Great trouble to go through for supplies. It would have been easier for them to raid one of our supply depots closer to Side 3 than hijack a single ship out here near Side 7. They took quite a risk for a relatively small gain."

"Maybe it's propaganda," Geoff Sutcliffe pipes up, "You know...just to show the Federation that the ISRLA can strike so close to our base at Side 7." 

"I doubt it," Athena responds, "That would only be the case if they put on a spectacular show of force. They're being stealthy; the civilian media isn't even aware of what's going on here."

Even as she speaks, Athena pulls up a readout of the Minovsky particle saturation in the area. It is not unusual for this part of space to be heavily saturated with Minovsky particles (most of which are released by the Federation itself to deter enemy long range attacks), but there is a mysteriously higher concentration approximately 57 kilometers out at bearing seven-zero. 

"Anna," Athena says, "Bearing seven-zero, 57 kilometers out. Is the concentration of Minovsky particles usually that high?"

Anna runs the current data against previously-gathered reconnaissance data, "No, ma'am, not out there. That extends a little further than the Federal Forces usually release Minovsky particles within the Side 7 zone."

Athena smiles, _They released excess Minovsky particles to shield themselves from detection. Ironically, in so doing, they left a marker for us to follow._

"All right," Athena says, "Proceed to Bearing two-five-zero."

The squad begins to protest, and Anna is the first to speak, "Two-five-zero? That's directly opposite to where the Minovsky particle concentration is, Captain."

"Don't question your orders; just follow them," Athena replies tersely, but evenly before she issues an additional order to her junior executive officer, "Jolie, I want you to separate from the squad and investigate the Minovsky field concentration. If you find the source, neutralize it and rendezvous with us immediately."

Jolie, understanding Athena's plan, replies, "Yes, ma'am."

Athena continues, "The rest of you follow me. Approach slowly and cautiously. When we make contact with the enemy, your objective is to draw the enemy away from the _Moonshadow._ Move out."

At the center of the heavy Minovsky particle concentration at 57 kilometers Bearing seven-zero relative the Centurion Team's previous position, a dark-colored AMX-017 Quebeley Mass-Production Type lies in wait.

The pilot of the Quebeley is 29-year old Jordan Sinclair. Sinclair is a veteran of the previous decade's First Neo Zeon War. Ten years ago, as a teenager, he was recruited by the young Neo Zeon warlord Glemy Toto for Toto's so-called "Newtype Corps." Sinclair is an Artificially Enhanced Human...one of a few dozen developed by either the Earth Federation's Titans Corps or the Axis Neo Zeon Empire through chemical, surgical, and nanotechnological means to mimic or enhance the powers of Newtypes. 

Sinclair was not deployed until just days before the Battle of Core 3 in U.C. 0089, the event that marked the end of the First Neo Zeon War. He had taken part in Glemy Toto's attempt to usurp control of the Neo Zeon Empire from Imperial Regent Haman Khan and Duchess Minerva Zabi (now the Centurion Team's Captain Athena Ibaz). Sinclair survived the conflict and was eventually captured by Federation/AEUG forces two months after the end of the war. Sinclair spent the next three years in a Federation military prison camp at Luna II, until resurgent Neo Zeon forces under the command of Colonel Char Aznable began raiding Federation bases for useable resources, both human and material, that it would use in its renewed war against Earth.

The Luna II Raid of September, U.C. 0092 was the first sign that the Federation had of an imminent new strike by Neo Zeon elements. Leading the Neo Zeon attack that day was a young Newtype by the name of Caitlin O'Rourke. 2Lt. O'Rourke's orders that day was to liberate as many of the Neo Zeon's captured Newtype soldiers as she could. 2Lt. O'Rourke succeeded in rescuing three, one of whom was Jordan Sinclair.

Liberated from Federation custody, Sinclair immediately accepted a new commission in Colonel Char's Neo Zeon Imperial Forces. Sinclair didn't do so for political reasons. He had never been a politically-inclined creature, and despite several years of imprisonment and mistreatment by Federation Forces authorities, he had no interest in revenge. He joined to be with his rescuer, 2Lt. Caitlin O'Rourke, with whom he had fallen in love.

For six meteoric months, Jordan and Caitlin were twin aces in Colonel Char's forces, wreaking significant damage against the Federation's space forces near Side 1. After Colonel Char's defeat, Jordan and Caitlin drifted together for a time before hiring out their skills and abilities as mercenary killers. Their ruthless efficiency had made them highly attractive to both the criminal underworld and anti-Federation groups that were able and willing to pay the necessary price for their services. Soon, the Twin Starkillers, as they had come to be known, developed a fearsome reputation in Federation intelligence circles.

A year ago, the Twin Starkillers were recruited by the Independent Spacenoid Republic Liberation Army. The ISRLA was planning a vital operation that would require a year's preparation and the skills of the deadliest mobile suit pilots that money could buy. For a payment of gold bouillon upon which Jordan and Caitlin could comfortably retire, the Twin Starkillers agreed to take on the assignment as the last and most dangerous job of their career. Jordan and Caitlin had vowed to each other that they would perform this final mission together, and if they survived, they would settle down peacefully together - never piloting mobile suits or killing people for politics or money ever again. Failing that, Jordan and Caitlin would die together, the Twin Starkillers forever united in life or death.

It is this dream that drives Jordan Sinclair and Caitlin O'Rourke, a son and daughter of a generation of war, to this desperate gambit.

Jordan's Quebeley is equipped with a Minovsky particle generator, a device that the ISRLA acquired at great cost. Jordan and Caitlin had agreed on a plan in which Jordan would draw away the Federal Forces while Caitlin and the other members of the squad that the ISRLA had assigned to them would carry out the capture of a Federation supply ship whose cargo is of great interest to both the Federation and the ISLRLA.

The Minovsky particles are meant to confuse the Federation, but the particles equally affect the sensors of Jordan's Quebeley. Nevertheless, Jordan's Newtype sensitivity alerts him to the approach of an interloper.

A heavy pressure weighs upon Jordan's head, tightening around his cerebral cortex like a vise. _Such intense pressure,_ Jordan reflects, _is a sign that there's a powerful Newtype in the area. The Federation has a pilot whose Newtype abilities rival or surpass even mine and Caitlin's. I'll need to use special caution._

Vectoring towards at Mach 1.5 towards the Minovsky field that shrouds Jordan Sinclair's Quebeley is the Federation's new prototype mobile suit Centurion Gundam, piloted by Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh.

Jolie hits the Centurion Gundam's retro verniers as she approaches the area of highest Minovsky particle concentration. The Centurion Gundam's array of sensor equipment is the most sophisticated and sensitive to be installed into an Earth Federation Forces mobile suit to date, but it is useless due to the enigmatic electromagnetic phenomenon discovered by and named after a society of academics in U.C. 0065. 

Over thirty years have passed since the Minovsky particle was first developed and deployed, but neither the Earth Federation nor the various incarnations of the Archduchy of Zeon have been able to develop an effective counter for a technological innovation that paradoxically rendered the most advanced war machines to become reliant on medieval combat tactics.

The scrambled radar of the Centurion Gundam is useless to Jolie, and eyeball visuals are no better. The area is cluttered with space debris left over from previous wars. Jolie marshals every scrap of restraint she has to resist firing upon the wreckage of a ten-year old broken RMS-106 Hizack.

Despite the ineffectiveness of her mobile suit's surveillance equipment, however, Jolie knows the enemy is out there. She senses a pressure bearing down upon her brain, something that has the form of...a falcon? A hawk? Jolie isn't sure, but her impression is that of a bird of prey.

But sometimes, the predator becomes the prey.

Aboard his Quebeley, Jordan Sinclair feels that his brain is on fire...a tormenting sensation. Just what could be out there?

_Whatever it is, it's a threat_, Jordan concludes, _got to get rid of it before it jeopardizes the mission...and Caitlin's life._

A dozen metallic funnels emerge from the plume-like tail section of the Quebeley. The funnels, powered by compact fusion thrusters and verniers, are each tipped with beam cannon. The Psychom funnels array themselves into a deadly formation and bear down upon Jolie's Centurion Gundam.

Jolie's battle instincts flare to life as she senses the approaching Psychom funnels. The predator has become the prey.

The funnels surround the Centurion Gundam in a deadly crisscross formation, sealing off the Federation mobile suit from any avenue of escape.

Jolie Minh, however, has never walked on avenues; she dashes through them.

With a few deft moves on the Centurion Gundam's maneuvering joystick and a flash of Psi-energy between her eyes, Jolie twists her mecha through a gymnastic maneuver that, by all rights, should exceed the Centurion Gundam's specified limits and tear the mecha apart. Somehow, the mighty mobile suit is able to hold together, and dodges seven of the twelve funnels' deadly shots.

Jolie brings the Centurion Gundam's arm mounted shield to protect herself from the brunt of the remaining five funnels' beam shots. The armored shield is battered and wrecked, but her mecha remains intact.

The combat computer of the Centurion Gundam reports that its host mobile suit has sustained an acceptable 3 damage, but the enemy's Psychom funnels are positioning themselves for a second barrage.

_No you don't!_ Jolie's mind rages, undeterred by the imminent danger.

The Centurion Gundam's beam rifle is in the mecha's metalshod hand in less time than it takes to imagine the motion. Three bursts of red-tinged Earth Federation Forces' beam armament energy erupt forth, and three Zeon-manufactured Psychom funnels are immolated in an instant.

The Centurion Gundam is already well out of the target zone of the remaining funnels by the time that its beam cannon shots hit home. An instant later, four Psi-guided interceptor missiles burst forth from the Centurion Gundam's shoulder-mounted armament pack, each following Jolie's neurological guidance to a darting target. Four more Psychom funnels are neutralized.

Five more Psychom funnels remain. Following their programmed attack pattern as well as the psychic guidance of Jordan Sinclair, these mount up to attack more quickly and fiercely upon sensing the destruction of their siblings. Reacting to incoming combat data transmitted by the destroyed funnels in their final functioning moments, the remaining funnels arrange themselves in a wide spread to defy the Centurion Gundam any opportunity to hit them all with its beam rifle or missiles.

Jolie instantly reads the strategy, and forms a counterstrategy of her own.

The Centurion Gundam darts after the nearest Psychom funnel. The 20-meter tall mobile suit chases after the 3-meter long Psychom funnel like a cat after a mouse.

The remaining four Psychom funnels are momentarily paralyzed by conflicting data. Dispassionate machines though they are, the funnels are nevertheless confused by the dilemma of needing to fire on one of their own in order to destroy the enemy. Artificial Intelligence experts would debate whether this phenomenon reflects a growing self-awareness in modern war machinery, or if it is merely the influence of human pilot.

In any case, the point is academic to Jolie; for her, all that matters is that the enemy funnels' momentary confusion gives her the scant seconds she needs to act.

The Centurion Gundam's magnetized, metalshod hand reaches out and draws the Psychom funnel into its grip. With an effort that strains the mobile suit's arm servomotors, the Centurion Gundam twists the funnel into the direction of a second funnel just as the beam cannon on the first funnel's tip erupts in a flash of light. 

Crushing the captive funnel in its hand, the Centurion Gundam draws out its beam saber, a ten-meter blade of contained beam energy capable of melting reinforced alloy in instants.

The arc of the blade is as graceful and quick as that of any ancient _samurai_ or _jian xia_ of ancient Asian lore. The trajectory of the blade guides it through the fuselages of the final three menacing Psychom funnels.

_Now, for you!_ the voice of Jolie's mind seethes, searching for her quarry. The prey has become the predator once again.

As Jolie confronts Jordan Sinclair, approximately 100 kilometers away, Athena leads the rest of the Centurion Team in a slow, cautious approach towards the _Moonshadow._

Athena has ordered her team to maintain radio silence. The team has drilled on their standard procedures for such a situation during countless training sessions, so there is no need for unnecessary communication.

The Centurion Team spreads into a surveillance formation. C-Team's mobile suits are each separated at irregular angles and distances from one another, making it difficult for an enemy to track or hit all of them simultaneously. Master Sergeant Karim Abdul-Said and Staff Sergeant Tomo Higashi's Guncannon-100s take the point. Behind their protection, Corporal Anna Horowitz's GM-IV AWAC scans for the presence of hostiles in the area. Corporals Geoff Sutcliffe and Karyn Luna flank Captain Athena Ibaz's Cour de Leon in their GM-IV Special Operations Customs.

From a nacelle in the backpack of Anna's GM-IV AWAC shoots out a dozen capsules. These are not warheads, but devices designed to neutralize explosions: chemical minesweepers.

The capsules deploy, then burst to spread an adhesive film that does not freeze even in the cold of space.

MAES (pronounced "mace")-11 is among the most brilliant products ever developed by the Earth Federation Forces' Chemists Corps. Magnetic Adhering Explosive Suppressor (MAES) is designed to attract metallic objects such as mines, affix them in a strong adhesive more potent than any previously known to humankind, and chemically suppress whatever explosive potential such objects might carry. In development since the Archduchy of Zeon deployed space mines around its conquered space territories during the One Year War, nine previous versions of MAES had been tested and improved upon until MAES-11 finally met the Earth Federation Forces' needs. A valuable tool, and one fairly expensive to produce, MAES-11 is distributed to the Earth Federation Special Forces for operations such as these.

The MAES-11 does its work quietly and efficiently, magnetically attracting objects in its adhesive grip. Thus far, it has not caught any space mines. Athena realizes, however, that that does not necessarily mean that space mines (or other threats) do not lie out there.

Athena surveys the data being relayed into her mobile suit's onboard combat computer from Anna's AWAC unit. The _Moonshadow_ has been disabled. Its engines are offline, and its communications array crippled. The ship is effectively dead in space. Anna's data does indicate, however, that the ship's life support systems are functional and in use - meaning that is possible that the ship's crew remains alive.

Athena magnifies a still image of the _Moonshadow_ on her screen, switching the image to magnetic imaging. Nearly invisible to the naked eye in the darkness of space, but quite obvious through magnetic imaging, a half dozen lines of cables are attached to the _Moonshadow_'s hull.

Athena wastes no more time. Drawing out the Cour De Leon's beam rifle, she takes aim at one of the cables and opens fire, severing the cable's link to the hull of the _Moonshadow._

As the rest of the Centurion Team maneuvers into battle formation, Athena takes a shot at an unexploded MAES-11 capsule floating near the damaged cable. The magnetic adhesive quickly attaches its grip to the cable. The cable begins to whip and flail in coils like the death paroxysms of a violently dying metallic snake.

Attached to the cable is a Gaza-C mobile suit, momentarily helpless as its pilot struggles to regain control.

Michael Evanhart never has that moment to regain that control. As his mobile suit's systems momentarily lock up from the volatile interplay between the Gaza C's severed magnetic cable and the MAES-11, Athena sinks the beam saber of her Cour De Leon into the cockpit of his Gaza-C, claiming his young life in a heat more intense than that of the core of the sun.

Students of warfare and tactics have often asked the question: which one wins out, talent or experience?

Today, Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh of the Earth Federation Forces and Jordan Sinclair of the ISRLA seem destined to find an answer to that query.

In Captain Athena Ibaz's profile on Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh, the commanding officer of the Centurion Team wrote of her junior executive officer, _"Chief Minh is, I believe, the most gifted pilot and fighter of our generation. Her combat instincts are flawless, and she moves with a speed and stealth that defy all description. Not since Amuro Ray has there been a mobile suit pilot of this much potential. Indeed, I believe that Chief Minh's potential might surpass that of Captain Amuro's. In time, as Chief Minh gains experience, she will be an unparalleled asset to the Earth Federation Forces."_

Experience, however, is a factor whose importance cannot be denied, and the truth of the matter is that for all of Jolie's raw talent, this is only her third sortie and she is facing a near ten-year veteran combat mobile suit pilot.

Jordan Sinclair has spent much of his adult life in the cockpit of a mobile suit. Although not yet thirty, he has accumulated more experience in MS combat than over ninety-percent of the mobile suit pilots currently serving in the Earth Federation Forces. Not lacking talent himself, Sinclair has already experienced more combat action than most pilots would ever know.

In this battle of talent versus experience, the result, thus far, is a stalemate.

The fierce strikes of the beam saber of Sinclair's Quebeley lance out like controlled bolts of lightning. Jolie, the beam saber of her Centurion Gundam drawn, struggles to parry. Presently, the offensive momentum belongs to the veteran Sinclair. Jolie is forced to defend, unable to seize the initiative to counterattack.

_This Feddie pilot is one tough nut to crack,_ Sinclair reflects, _no enemy pilot has ever been able to last this long against my Quebeley. No matter. I sense her defenses weakening...her? Yes, I'm sure this pilot is a girl. Hah! She's almost as good as Caitlin!_

A beam saber slash from the Quebeley comes perilously close to taking the Centurion Gundam's head unit off. Another strike nearly penetrates the Centurion Gundam's cockpit hatch.

_Too close,_ Jolie grates. So far, her defense is holding up against the Quebeley's strikes, but Jolie knows that if she does not seize the offensive initiative soon, she will be defeated. The problem is that the enemy's strikes are coming too quickly and too fiercely for Jolie to do anything but focus purely on defense.

Sinclair's Quebeley makes a feint with its beam saber that draws away the blade of Jolie's Centurion Gundam. In that moment, the Quebeley twists its wrist so that its beam blade strikes down on the Centurion Gundam's left shoulder. Jolie maneuvers the Centurion Gundam away just quickly enough that the slash fails to remove her mecha's left arm, but the arm is sparking and spewing damaged mechanisms.

"Left arm unit immobilized," the Centurion Gundam's combat computer reports.

_Damn_, Jolie realizes,_ that means I can't use the shield or pull out my beam rifle without first dropping the beam saber._

Sinclair's Quebeley raises its beam saber for a downward strike towards the Centurion Gundam's immobilized left side. Jolie has no time to twist her mobile suit around.

So instead, she charges the Quebeley directly with the Centurion Gundam, sword thrust out in front.

It is a desperate move that invites self-destruction, but it is also the only hope of salvation Jolie has.

_What is she doing?!_ Sinclair reacts with alarm, twisting the Quebeley to avoid the Centurion Gundam's desperate headlong charge. Even while attempting to evade the Centurion Gundam's attack, the Quebeley does not surrender its own attack initiative. Such are the benefits of experience.

Two beam saber blades find their mark.

The yellow blade of the Quebeley's beam saber digs deeply into the Centurion Gundam's main body, burning its way towards the Federation mecha's nuclear fusion engine.

The red blade of the Centurion Gundam's beam saber melts away the reinforced armor of the Quebeley's cockpit hatch, its intense heat meeting resistance against the cockpit's heavy armor.

The lights of the Centurion Gundam's eye camera units flicker and dim, turning in an instant from the yellow glow of life to the black coldness of death.

The monoeye of the Quebeley burns intensely for a moment, impossibly bright...impossibly red.

A flash of light, and the silence of space.

The battle between talent and experience is won, and lost.

No sooner does Athena draw the beam saber of her Cour de Leon from the melted cockpit cavity of Michael Evanhart's Gaza-C than does a faint glow in the distance, perhaps a thousand meters behind and a five hundred meters above the derelict _Moonshadow_, capture her attention.

Athena eyeballs the source of the glow and the relative positions of her Centurion Team pilots. The Guncannon-100s of Sergeants Abdul-Said and Higashi are directly in line of the source of the glow.

"Karim! Tomo!" Athena orders tersely through the comlink, "scatter now!"

Even as she orders the two sergeants to take evasive maneuvers, Athena launches a pair of rocket-propelled grenades from the forearm launcher housings of her mobile suit. The RPGS soar at three times the speed of sound and impact against the Megabazooka cannon borne and powered by a pair of RMS-108 Marasais.

There is no weight in outer space, but mass is constant regardless of gravity. Encumbered by the mass of the Megabazooka cannon, to which they are attached by power cables, and with their nuclear fusion energy output halved by powering the mighty weapon, the Marasais have no hope of escaping the ensuing explosion caused by their own megaweapon's destruction.

Athena directs her mobile suit's combat computer to do an update scan of the _Moonshadow_ to ensure that the ship has not sustained further damage from its proximity to the explosion of the enemy weapon. The Cour de Leon's sensors confirm that the _Moonshadow_ has endured only some further superficial damage to its hull from shrapnel impact, but nothing more significant than that.

_A calculated risk,_ Athena acknowledges, _but one I'm willing to take if the lives of my subordinates are at stake._

Athena opens communications to those subordinates, "Attention Centurion Team: deploy magnetic clamp cables to secure the _Moonshadow_. It's imperative that we get the ship away from here and back to Garrison Noah immediately. Utilize extreme caution. I'm almost certain that enemy units are still in the area."

So saying, Athena transforms her Cour de Leon into its Wave Rider spacecraft configuration. In this mode, the mobile suit is no longer anthropomorphic, but a sleek spacecraft capable of multiple-mach speed and precise maneuverability.

The Centurion Team's mobile suits attach their magnetic clamp cables to the _Moonshadow_. They begin to tow the crippled Federation supply ship in the direction of Garrison Noah.

_We're at our most vulnerable now,_ Athena thinks, _This will draw out the remaining enemy units. Where the hell is Jolie?_

Athena briefly considers contacting her junior executive officer, but has no time to act upon it before a mounting pressure in her head alerts her to the approach of a hostile interloper.

Athena's Cour de Leon changes back from Wave Rider to Mobile Suit configuration, firing its beam rifle.

The shot cuts clean through the body of an enemy Gaza-C unit, whose mecha flies straight into the path of Athena's beam. Athena's shot had been aimed towards not where the enemy was, but where it would be when the beam passed through the same space.

Athena's next opponent, however, is not nearly as obliging. Caitlin O'Rouke's Jagd Doga bears down on Athena's Cour de Leon, heralded by a dozen Psychom fin funnels.

Caitlin mutters under her breath, "Feddie scum. You'll pay for the lives of my men!"

Athena counters by deploying the last of her MAES-11 capsules. The capsules deploy from their nacelles within the backpack unit of the Cour de Leon, their magnetic fields drawing the funnels off-course and chemically inhibiting their blast nozzles.

All except one, however, which glows ominously in the direction of the Cour de Leon's cockpit module, a mere fifty meters away.

Her moment of triumph at hand, Caitlin grins. Her smile is wiped away by a sharp pain than suddenly fills her cranium, and a deep grief in her heart, "Jordan. Jordan is…"

Jolie's Centurion Gundam rams shoulder-first into Caitlin O'Rourke's momentarily immobilized Jagd Doga. Athena tries to get a lock on the Jagd Doga with her Cour De Leon's beam rifle, but is unwilling to shoot with Jolie in the way.

Tears fill Caitlin's eyes as she realizes, "You! You killed Jordan!"

Jolie attempts to blast away to give Athena a clear shot at the Jagd Doga, but the Doga grabs onto the Centurion Gundam and wrenches it back violently.

Had the Centurion Gundam been in top condition, and had Caitlin O'Roukre not been in a frenzied rage due to the death of her lover, the close-quarters battle most likely would have favored Jolie and the Centurion Gundam. The Centurion Gundam, however, is heavily damaged from its encounter with Jordan Sinclair's Quebeley. All sensory equipment, including the main and secondary camera units, has been disabled (Jolie used her Newtype abilities to locate her comrades and their enemies). The Federation mobile suit's left arm, though still attached to the Centurion Gundam's main body, is immobilized. For each motion the Centurion Gundam makes, Jolie must strain on the joystick. The controls have lost all delicacy, forcing Jolie to muscle the mecha through its maneuvers with all the strength in her tiny frame.

Holding the Centurion Gundam tight in a death grip, the Jagd Doga jams its right knee into the backpack energy/thruster unit of its opponent. Inside the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, Jolie is violently thrashed about. The safety restraints of her seat lock around her shoulders and waist, knocking the breath out of her.

_Jolie!_ Athena's eyes widen in alarm, drawing the Cour De Leon's beam saber and charging at the Jagd Doga.

Reacting swiftly, Caitlin O'Rourke pushes the damaged, fluid-leaking and spark-sputtering Centurion Gundam at Athena's Cour de Leon. Athena manages to dodge the incoming wreck by flying above it.

_First, I'll finish you,_ Caitlin resolves, as she locks the Jagd Doga's beam rifle on Athena's Cour de Leon.

Before Caitlin can fire on the Cour de Leon, however, Jolie's Centurion Gundam is right back in her face, cutting into her monoeye unit with its head-mounted Vulcan cannon...the only weapon system on the Centurion Gundam that still functions.

"I've had enough of you!" Caitlin screams hoarsely, "you'll pay now for Jordan's life!"

So saying, Caitlin directs the Jagd Doga to reach back for its beam saber. She would plunge the weapon directly into the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, just as Athena Ibaz's Cour de Leon had done to Michael Evanhart's Gaza-C...and just as the Centurion Gundam had done to Jordan's Quebeley.

But the weapon is not there. The metalshod hand of the Jagd Doga grasps at empty space where the beam saber handle should be stored on its backpack energy housing unit.

Inside the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh smiles viciously.

In the Centurion Gundam's right hand is the beam saber emitter that Caitlin O'Rourke was seeking.

A bright column of yellow-hued light issues forth from the emitter. The Centurion Gundam's right wrist turns, and the arm to which it is attached rises with a graceful motion.

Inside the cockpit of the Jagd Doga, Caitlin O'Rourke knows that the battle is over.

All her battles are over.

_Jordan, my love...I'm sorry. I couldn't avenge you. But at least our separation was short. Eternity will be sweet, my love._

In her final moments, Caitlin looks at the Centurion Gundam. Her hatred is dissipated now, replaced by understanding, _That pilot. She's more powerful than anybody you or I have ever faced, Jordan. If she reaches her full potential, she..._

Caitlin's thoughts end there, as her Jagd Doga becomes a fireball, lighting local space like a Lilliputian star.

Athena's worried voice comes crackling through the Centurion Gundam's laser communications receiver, "Jolie! Are you all right?!"

Jolie, gasping for breath, her adrenaline spent, answers after a minute, "Yeah. Yeah...I'm OK, I think."

Athena maneuvers the Cour de Leon close to support the heavily damaged Centurion Gundam. She receives word from Corporal Anna Horowitz that the rest of the Centurion Team and the wreckage of the _Moonshadow_ have entered Federation-controlled space.

Satisfied with that, Athena prepares to rejoin the rest of the squad, pulling Jolie's damaged Centurion Gundam with her.

Her bloodlust now subdued, Jolie experiences a feeling of...regret.

_Those two I killed. They were...lovers? They seemed to care about each other more than anything in the world._

Jolie shudders. _Mom...Dad...Big Brother...what am I becoming?_

Jolie shakes her head to clear it. She is a soldier. War is without mercy or pity. If she does not kill, she will be killed. She learned that while living in Industria Colony.

She learned that from Alexander Miguel.

The image of the Zeon warlord's cold, arrogant visage erases all doubt from Jolie's mind.

Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh has killed two enemy combatants today.

She would kill as many more as she needed to until Alexander Miguel burns in hell.

Of that much, she is certain.

By the time that Athena and Jolie return to Garrison Noah, the rest of the Centurion Team has already arrived there with the damaged _Moonshadow_. The team has already returned its mobile suits to maintenance docks and has begun the post-combat routine of medical checks, debriefing, and mission report-logging.

Jolie emerges wearily from the cockpit of the heavily damaged Centurion Gundam, her tiny body aching, especially around her shoulders and waist. Jolie unseals the O-ring collar of her normalsuit and removes her helmet, letting her long, black hair flow freely down her back as a sighing hiss of pressurized oxygen escapes from the space within her normalsuit.

Jolie turns her head to spot Captain Athena Ibaz gliding towards her, Datapad in hand. Efficient as ever, Athena is already nearly finished filing her post-mission report.

Athena surveys the damage to the Centurion Gundam, "Pretty bad…"

"Yeah, I know," Jolie acknowledges with a degree of embarrassment, "Sorry. I'll do better next time."

Athena puts her hands on Jolie's shoulders and smiles, "I was talking about the damage to the Centurion Gundam, not about your performance out there, although I suppose the two do come hand-in-hand. It's a matter of experience."

Athena surveys Jolie a little more closely, noting no apparent injuries, but also noting that Jolie seems a bit spaced out, "Are you all right?"

Jolie replies, "Yeah, sure. Fine. Just combat stress fatigue again, I suppose."

Athena nods, "Report to medical bay for post-combat examination. The rest of the team is already there. I'll join you in a minute."

Jolie floats away.

Rapidly pressing the keys on her Datapad even as she further examines the damage to the Centurion Gundam, Athena relays a damage report from the mecha's onboard computer to the maintenance crew. The Special Forces' staff of engineers and technicians would be on it within the hour. In addition to the repair order, Athena sends the maintenance staff an extra request regarding the Centurion Gundam, one that Athena is sure will please Jolie when the teenager finds out about it.

That detail thus dispensed with, Athena floats away from the Centurion Gundam towards Jolie, on the way to the medical bay. Athena catches up with her junior executive officer as they float past the wreck of the _Moonshadow_, now moored in Garrison Noah's cavernous space dock.

The surviving crew of the _Moonshadow_ disembarks from their damaged ship, including Captain Ilongo N'gula, who is met by Colonel Peter Cairlay and General Manron Blackhead of the Earth Federation Forces. The two senior Federal Forces officers whisk the captain of the supply vessel into a waiting limousine, which departs to what will undoubtedly be a long debriefing meeting. The rest of the _Moonshadow_'s crew awaits processing before being sent for physical examinations and debriefings. The more seriously wounded are sent to the medical bay immediately for care. There were reportedly twelve crew deaths incurred as a result of the ISRLA mobile suit raid on the ship.

Athena pauses, gazing at the docked wreckage of the _Moonshadow_ in a troubled manner. Already, utility vehicles have begun unloading the _Moonshadow_'s cargo, most of which is fortunately undamaged. Among the crated items being unloaded from the ship are spare parts for mecha, ordnance, medical supplies, and even ten fresh-off-the-assembly line GM-IV mobile suits.

Athena checks her Datapad: the manifest of the ship's cargo appears consistent with what she sees being unloaded from the ship. A fairly routine supply run from Earth to Garrison Noah.

_Too routine_, Athena reflects, _for the ISRLA to have gone through all that trouble._

Moreover, would a raid upon a Federation supply ship bearing a standard cargo of military supplies have required a Special Forces sortie? Would it have drawn the personal attention of Colonel Cairlay and General Blackhead? Not even the ten mobile suits listed as part of the _Moonshadow_'s cargo were likely to have drawn so much attention.

The implications trouble Athena deeply.

Jolie, noticing that her commanding officer has stopped floating with her and is staring intently at the _Moonshadow_, pipes up, "Hey, 'Thena? What's the matter?"

Athena emerges from her reflections and rejoins Jolie, "Nothing, Jo. Let's go."

Athena takes one last glance over her shoulder at the _Moonshadow_ and frowns. A course of action is already plotted in her head.

Thirty minutes later, Captain Athena Ibaz is in the reception area of Colonel Peter Cairlay's offices in Green Noah Hall.

The reception officer, Chief Warrant Officer Patrick Densmore, rises and salutes as he sees Athena enter, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am."

Athena returns the salute, "At ease, Chief. I'd like to see Colonel Cairlay, if he's available." Athena already knows that the colonel is not. The debriefing session with Captain N'Gula of the _Moonshadow_ is unlikely to conclude for at least several more hours. Exactly what Athena is counting on.

"Sorry, ma'am," Chief Densmore replies, "the colonel is presently in a conference with senior officers and is not expected back in the office until 22:30 at the soonest."

"I see," Athena replies, removing her Datapad from her uniform's inner pocket, "I've completed my mission report and I'd like to leave it for the colonel in his office."

"Of course, ma'am," the young chief warrant officer says, keying the code that opens Colonel Cairlay's office. It is part of standard Special Forces routine for Special Forces team commanders to personally deliver their mission reports to Colonel Cairlay's office, even when he is not present…a standard routine that Athena now exploits.

Having gained entrance to Colonel Cairlay's office, Athena uploads her mission report into the colonel's desktop terminal, as she told Chief Densmore she would. What Athena did not tell the chief, however, is that she would be taking as well as delivering.

As part of their espionage and intelligence-gathering training, Earth Federation Special Forces officers learn the art of computer security hacking. Special Forces officers could hack any computer security system devised by humanity…except those used by the upper echelon of the Earth Federation Forces, of course.

The Federal Forces' computers, Athena had been taught at the academy, represented the pinnacle of human achievement in the field of artificial intelligence. The Federation had drafted the most brilliant computer scientists to help it design and build the most sophisticated data security system ever devised. Nobody could ever crack it, Athena's intelligence-gathering instructor had boldly claimed.

Seven hours after the instructor had made his confident assertion, Athena had cracked the security system…an accomplishment she had kept to herself in the intervening three years, until its usefulness has now finally become apparent.

Athena rapidly types in the sequence of logarithms that will give her access to information accessible only to flag-ranking officers with special security clearance. She is aware of the risk she is taking. Were any of her superiors to discover what she is about to gain access to, she would almost definitely be shot for espionage and treason.

Athena gains access to Colonel Cairlay's files on the _Moonshadow_'s most recent shipment from Earth.

The information from the colonel's files offers a wealth of fact not available through the common networks used by Federal Forces officers. Nevertheless, the manifest listed in the colonel's files for the _Moonshadow_'s cargo matches that on the common networks, and what Athena had seen earlier in Garrison Noah's hangar bay.

All except one item, marked in dark red letters: "Contingent-1."

Athena has no idea what that refers to, but digging a little deeper, she notices a pair of codes.

Athena downloads the codes into her Datapad and shuts down the colonel's computer. Any longer and Chief Warrant Officer Densmore is likely to become suspicious.

Athena thanks the chief for providing her access to the colonel's office.

She makes her way back to the hangar bay in Garrison Noah.

Athena approaches the wreck of the _Moonshadow_, still docked in the hangar bay of Garrison Noah, where it promised to stay for at least a month for repairs. Standing guard over the ship is a squad of military police.

The leader of the MP squad is 1Lt. Daniel Perez, who recognizes Athena, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am."

Athena tells the MP officer, "I've received orders to board the _Moonshadow_ to verify information from my mission report."

Lieutenant Perez replies, "My apologies, ma'am. I received strict orders from Colonel Cairlay to allow no one to board this vessel without his express permission, ma'am."

"I see," Athena replies, "Truman0745."

Upon hearing the code, 1Lt. Perez orders his troops to stand aside, "You may board if you please, ma'am."

Athena boards the _Moonshadow_. Although the ship is docked in airlock, she is dressed in her normalsuit, which among other kinds of protection, shields its wearer from radiation.

The _Moonshadow_'s cargo has already been completely unloaded. Its known cargo, anyway. Athena glides down the darkened corridors of the damaged ship, towards a part of the cargo hold separated from the general cargo area.

Athena opens a tiny hatch built so seamlessly into the inner wall of the ship's cargo hold that it is all but undetectable. Athena opens this to reveal an electronic security device. This security device requires identification from the person accessing it through laser pattern identification of the person's eye. Athena does not have clearance for this, but she doesn't need it. A day after she had learned how to crack the Federation's computer security code, she had discovered how to defeat the eye-reader device as well.

Overriding the security device, Athena types in the second of the two codes she stole from Colonel Cairlay's files: "5J3X-Starfire."

A massive metallic door, capable of withstanding multiple blasts of a mobile suit's beam rifle or direct hits from high explosive missiles, slowly slides open.

Athena, her normalsuit sealed to the world outside, enters the cold, dark chamber. She activates a flashlight, whose beam flashes upon a dozen metallic cylinders bearing a familiar circular yellow and black symbol that freezes Athena's blood:

The symbol of "radioactive hazard."

A deeply troubled Captain Athena Ibaz returns to the barracks of the Centurion Team at 23:00. Her team had, per regulations, doused the lights and gone to bed two hours earlier.

Athena goes into her quarters, but knows that it is futile to sleep. Not after what she has just seen.

Athena pours herself a glass of brandy from her liquor collection. She takes a long drink from the glass to steady her nerves.

During the early stages of the One Year War eighteen years earlier, the Earth Federation Government and the Archduchy of Zeon signed a treaty banning the use of the nuclear weapons. That treaty was not broken (at least not openly) for the duration of that particular war, but both sides violated the treaty during Colonel Char's uprising at Axis Fortress in U.C. 0093, the year before Athena enrolled at the Federal Academy. As a matter of international jurisprudence, the Antarctic Treaty of U.C. 0079 that banned the use of nuclear weapons is all but dead...owing to the fact that one of the political entities that agreed to the terms of that treaty, the Archduchy of Zeon, no longer exists (except as warring factions of former Zeon military leaders beyond the Asteroid Belt in the Outer Solar System). Nevertheless, Athena finds it difficult to believe that the Earth Federation Forces have begun the production of nuclear weapons again.

Athena considers whom the Federation plans to use those weapons against. There are really only two possibilities: the aforementioned Zeon warlords in the Outer Solar System, who continue to harass the Federation from afar, or the ISR movement on Side 3.

Side 3, the birthplace of Zeon...the birthplace of Duchess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon, now Captain Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Forces' Centurion Special Operations Team.

Sighing, Athena puts her emptied brandy glass down. For reasons that even Athena herself does not understand, she finds herself in Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh's quarters. Perhaps Athena is looking for someone to confide in? If so, her search is fruitless. The beautiful teenaged pilot is fast asleep, oblivious to Athena's presence.

Jolie's shapely, but diminutive figure is uncovered, her blanket having fallen to the ground. Athena picks the blanket up and covers Jolie securely in it, patting her protégée's head affectionately.

Athena smiles despite herself, _Maybe I'm getting maternal in my old age...which is hysterical because I'm barely three years older than this "child" I'm caring for here._

Athena's thoughts turn to the nuclear weapons she discovered in the concealed cargo hold of the _Moonshadow_. Would the Federation use those weapons against children half Jolie's age? Athena shudders at the prospect of having to carry out such an order someday.

Athena makes sure that Jolie's covers are secure, the only thing she can secure at present, then sighs again as she leaves Jolie's quarters for another long, silent, sleepless night.

Six hours later, Captain Athena Ibaz is supervising her team's morning maintenance checks on their mobile suits. Garrison Noah's staff of engineers and technicians had worked through the night to restore the Centurion Team's mobile suits to top working condition after the previous day's engagement against enemy mobile suits. The pilots now must test their mecha to ensure that they indeed are functioning at optimum condition.

Jolie floats over to Athena, "Hey, 'Thena! What'd you call me up here so urgent for?"

Athena says with mock iciness, "Is that how I taught you to address me?"

Somewhat perfunctorily, Jolie salutes, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am. Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh reporting as ordered, ma'am."

Having made her point on protocol, Athena offers one of her pretty grins, "At ease, Chief. Repairs to your Centurion Gundam have been completed. Have you checked it out yet?"

"No, ma'am," comes the reply, "I was just getting to it."

"On the double, Chief," Athena says, motioning towards the maintenance dock where the Centurion Gundam stands.

As Jolie turns towards the Centurion Gundam, she sees that the damaged head and arm components have been replaced. All traces of the previous day's damage have been repaired, and the mobile suit has been given a new paint job...with a new White Phoenix insignia painted onto the face of its arm-mounted shield.

"I hope you like it, 'White Phoenix'," Athena says, approaching.

"Like it," Jolie replies, "I LOVE it! Thanks, 'Thena...er, Captain!"

_Like a new day,_ Athena muses, _she rises again: The White Phoenix._

Her legend is only beginning.


	6. Chapter 6: THE BLACKBIRDS

EPISODE 6: THE BLACKBIRDS

Chief Warrant Officer Jolie Minh is alone in the Centurion Team's lounge. The other members of the Centurion Team are on their monthly leaves, visiting family and friends or attending to personal business off the base.

Jolie, who has neither family nor friends outside of the Centurion Team, or much personal business, remains on the base with Captain Athena Ibaz.

_Maybe I can talk 'Thena into going into town with me,_ Jolie thinks to herself. Upon further reflection, however, Jolie realizes that it's unlikely she'd be able to persuade her workaholic commanding officer to go. At the moment, Athena is locked inside her office devising new anti-ISRLA tactics.

Boredom finally overwhelms Jolie, so she picks up one of the ancient books that Athena gave to her, something called _The Prince_ by an author named "Niccolo Machiavelli."

Jolie takes off her uniform boots and crosses her long, lovely legs beneath her on one of the lounge's cushioned seats. Jolie had stopped attending school in the Fourth Grade. Consequently, her reading skills are not quite where they should be (i.e. high school level). Nevertheless, Jolie understands the gist of the text well enough to become infuriated.

"What total B.S.!" Jolie growls as she throws the book across the room.

Athena enters the lounge, having emerged from her office for a fresh cup of coffee, "You really should take better care of these, Jolie. These are priceless treasures."

Jolie uncrosses her shapely legs and pulls her uniform boots back on, "That 'Mach-ee-o-vel-e' guy is full of shit! What does he mean that the ends justifies the means, and the strong and ruthless are the ones who ought to rule?!"

Athena, picking up the leather-bound book from the floor and lovingly setting it on a nearby table, replies, "It's Machiavelli. He was an Italian Renaissance thinker, and essentially, he was right. We're living in what Thomas Hobbes called a State of Nature, Jolie. Every living being must look out for its own interests. You must eliminate your enemies before they eliminate you."

That much Jolie can understand. Surviving for five years in the hellish environment of Industria Colony, she could not afford to be naive about the needs of survival. Still, that doesn't justify Machiavelli's coldhearted worldview in Jolie's mind.

Realizing that Jolie does not fully grasp the concept, however, Athena sits down and begins to patiently explain the idea further, "You've never been to Earth, Jolie. You've never seen how animals survive in their natural habitats - how predators obtain sustenance through ruthlessness and cunning. For example, when you're in combat aboard the Centurion Gundam, you set aside your enemy's humanity, reduce him or her to a threat that you must eradicate for your own survival. Moreover, you need to anticipate how the enemy will threaten you...think ahead of her or him."

"You mean like that time you trapped me in the net when we first met?" Jolie asks.

Athena laughs lightly at the memory of their first encounter, "Something like that, yes. I knew I couldn't outfight you straight up, so I took advantage of the environment against you."

Jolie nods with understanding.

Athena and Jolie have come to enjoy these discussions, from which they have both learned a great deal (especially Jolie). In the eight months that they have worked together, Athena and Jolie have developed a very strong bond of empathy between them. Both orphans, both extremely talented and strong-willed, and both beautiful, they share much in common. They are also, paradoxically, a set of contrasts. Athena is refined, elegant, and erudite, while Jolie is passionate, vivacious, and candid. Jolie admires Athena's elegance, knowledge, and wit, while Athena admires Jolie's fearlessness and energy. They also, however, occasionally experience mild friction with each other: Jolie sometimes finds herself chafing under Athena's attention to detail and demand for perfection, while Athena is at times frustrated by Jolie's recklessness and impudence.

These differences, however, have seemingly only solidified their friendship. They have become almost like sisters...each fiercely loyal to the other, and together in combat, as both the Federation and its enemies are quickly discovering, an extremely formidable combination of excellent strategic mind and superior combat prowess.

Athena says, "Anyway, I'm glad I caught you here. There's something I need to tell you."

_Uh-oh_, Jolie thinks, "Am I in trouble? What reg did I break this time?"

Athena smiles, "I need to congratulate you, **Second Lieutenant** Jolie Minh."

"Second Lieutenant? Me? You're kidding," Jolie says in disbelief.

"The promotion went through this morning," Athena beams proudly at Jolie, "and I just signed the documents authorizing the promotion. You'll be given your Lieutenant's bars and other accoutrements at a ceremony on Monday."

"Cool!" Jolie exults, "my daddy was a First Lieutenant when he was in the Federal army!"

"Your family would have been very proud of you, Jolie," Athena says with an uncommon warmth in her voice, "just as I am."

The two share a sisterly embrace.

Athena remarks, "You're only sixteen and you've already almost reached your father's rank when he was almost twice that age."

Jolie replies, "Actually, Daddy joined the EFSS when he was about sixteen like me. During the Gryps War, he was in the Titans."

"So I read in his dossier," Athena replies nonjudgmentally.

Jolie is compelled to add, "But he didn't take any part in that colony gassing stuff the Titans did! Daddy wasn't a murderer, just a soldier!"

_There are some who would say that there's no difference_, Athena thinks to herself, but leaves unspoken.

"I know that, Jolie," Athena reassures her friend and subordinate, "you don't need to say it."

"Didn't want you to misunderstand," Jolie says somewhat sheepishly.

"Neither the Federation nor the Zeon has a monopoly on atrocities," Athena observes, "to live is to kill."

"Ma-chee-o...whatever, again?" Jolie wonders.

"No," Athena replies solemnly, wiping her fingers with her handkerchief, "Giren Zabi, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the Archduchy of Zeon."

_Athena's late uncle, whose memory she detested._

The Archduchy of Zeon, and the Republic of Zeon that preceded it, began life in the space colonies of Side 3 located in the dark side of lunar orbit. It was there that during the U.C. 0050s, a thinker by the name of Zeon Zum Daikun first championed the ideology of **Contolism**, and prophesied the advent of the Newtype.

Zeon Daikun posited that after fifty years of living in outer space, free of the effects of Earths' gravity, humanity had begun its evolution to a higher state of existence...one in which the true potential of the human mind and the human soul would be unleashed. The time had come for humanity to rise forth from its terrestrial cradle and settle its new home among the stars. This was necessary not only for humanity's future, but also for balance of life on planet Earth as well. Earth had hosted and nurtured humanity for hundreds of thousands of years, but humanity, in its constant push towards civilization and progress, had exhausted the ecology of its homeworld and threatened the further existence of life on Earth. For the future of the Earth, as well as humanity's future, Daikun argued, the mass movement of humanity into outer space was an inevitability.

Two generations of human beings forcibly removed from Earth and sent to move into outer space found great sympathy for Daikun's ideology and cause. Hundreds of millions, and ultimately over two billion came to support Daikun, paving the way for the foundation of the Republic of Zeon in the year U.C. 0062.

From the outset, the Earth Federation Government eyed the spaceborn population warily. During the first five decades of space colonization, the Spacenoid population had found numerous reasons to be dissatisfied with the Federation's rule. Corruption was rampant. Abuses were not uncommon. There was a general sense that the leaders on Earth did not care about the people it had sent into outer space to live, and considered their Spacenoid brethren as little more than refuse to be disposed of with as little fuss as possible.

When Zeon Daikun began to agitate for the establishment of an independent Spacenoid republic in Side 3 during the U.C. 0050s, the Earth Federation Government was loathe to agree to the idea. Nevertheless, the Federation being the inertia-set and shortsighted bureaucracy that it was, saw fewer drawbacks in letting Daikun and his Spacenoid cultists have their celestial republic rather than risk the costly military confrontation that might ensue if the Federation were to take steps to forbid it. Thus, in U.C. 0062, the Republic of Zeon was born.

Zeon Daikun was, at heart, a pacifist. He believed that peaceful coexistence between the Spacenoid population and the people who remained rooted to the Earth to be imperative. In time, Daikun reasoned, as Newtypes emerged among the Spacenoid population, they would open the minds and hearts of their brothers and sisters on Earth, and peacefully persuade them to join humanity's inexorable path towards advancement. Daikun's dream of the peaceful advancement of humanity did not survive his sudden death in U.C. 0069.

Zeon Daikun and his people were betrayed by one of his most trusted lieutenants, **Degin Sod Zabi**, who had been Vice Prime Minister of the Republic of Zeon. Upon Zeon Daikun's death, Degin Zabi abolished the Republic of Zeon and declared the foundation of the Archduchy of Zeon, installing himself as Archduke. At the prodding of his eldest son, Giren, Degin Zabi adopted a policy of mass militarization for the new archduchy. All of the colony's resources were dedicated to military research, and over the next decade, Zeon scientists and engineers would develop such deadly new weaponry as beam cannon and mobile suits. Paralleling the rapid development of a vast war machine and the training of a large Spacenoid army, Giren Zabi preached a new philosophy of hatred. Abandoning Zeon Daikun's pacifistic, gradualist ideals, Giren Zabi stoked the flames of anger and resentment among the people of the Archduchy of Zeon, encouraging them in fiery speeches and writings to hate the people of Earth for their heartlessness and ignorance. Giren's philosophy, taught to the people of Zeon for a decade, was that the future of humanity depended upon the extermination of those who continued to linger upon and exploit the Earth, and that the Earth's resources must be secured by force to supply humanity's further advancement into space.

In response to these developments, the Earth Federation Government also focused its attention to strengthening its military apparatus during the U.C. 0070s. For ten years, tensions mounted between the Earth Federation Government and the Archduchy of Zeon.

Then, just as the new year of U.C. 0079 dawned, the Zeon Archduchy Forces attacked the Federation space colony of Side 5, and followed with attacks against targets on the planet itself. The One Year War had begun...the first in a series of military conflicts between Earthnoids and Spacenoids that have claimed, to date, over half of the human population. Of the twenty billion that lived on Earth or the space colonies prior to the beginning of the One Year War, fewer than eight billion now remained.

And in the eighteen years since the One Year War ended, some things have not changed...at least not for the better.

Side 3 today is an occupied war zone.

Zum City, once the opulent center of Zeon government, culture, education, and industry, is (and has been for over a decade) a site of perpetual chaos and violence. Only the hardiest of residents have elected to remain in Zum City, and those who do eke out a Spartan existence amidst a paradox of heavy security and relentless violence.

Somewhere on the streets of Zum City, a Federal Forces RGM-95 GM-IV mobile suit is making a routine patrol of the city. Without warning, the mobile suit's head/camera unit explodes. In a nearby alley, two ISRLA guerillas armed with a rocket propelled gun scramble away.

In another part of the city, Federal Forces infantrymen are engaged in an automatic rifle and handgun shootout with a half-dozen ISRLA freedom fighters. Heavy casualties are inflicted by both sides.

In a grocery store elsewhere in the city, armed Federal troopers storm into the business and demand to see the owner. When the owner emerges, the troopers proceed to beat the owner and his employees savagely before taking them away for interrogation. The store's inventory is confiscated by the Federal Forces.

At a house in a residential district of the city, Federal soldiers burst in, assaulting the men and women within. There is murder and rape.

On another street in the city, six Federal Forces soldiers on foot patrol are suddenly cut down by a hail of gunfire from a speeding van. The van's passengers shout the slogan, "Liberate Zeon!" as the Federal soldiers fall into pools of their own blood.

A small squad of Federal soldiers storms into the clandestine offices of the _Spacenoid Liberation Journal_, a revolutionary newsletter operating underground in Side 3. The soldiers open fire upon the handful of staff writers and investigative reporters, ransack the office, and finally set the building on fire.

Elsewhere, three Federal Forces soldiers are enjoying a game of cards at their post when they are suddenly assaulted by a hail of Molotov Cocktails.

Through all of this anarchy and chaos, the figure of a tall, thin man clad in a long trench coat and felt hat walks hurriedly stealthily through the dangerous streets of Zum City. The man approaches a small office building in a comparatively isolated part of the city, keys in a security code at the door, and gains admittance.

The trenchcoat-clad man proceeds down a corridor until he arrives at an office marked with a simple sign, "Medical Clinic."

Within the clinic, an attractive blonde woman in her mid-thirties, blue-eyed and soft-haired, gently performs a physical examination on a little girl.

Dr. Sayla Mass, also known as Artasia Som Daikun, smiles at the little girl and turns to her parents, ""She'll be fine. It's the air pollution created within the colony by the breakdown of the ventilation systems that's driving her breathing problems. I'll provide her some medication that should alleviate the symptoms a bit, but she really needs to move somewhere where the air is cleaner...not to mention where it's safer in general."

Sayla provides her patient's parents with a bottle of medication, along with some documents that will allow them passage out of Side 3. She wishes them well and declines their offers of payment.

As her patients depart, Sayla greets the trenchcoated man who has entered her clinic. She knows him well.

The man removes his hat and his trenchcoat to reveal a familiar face. He is Kai Shiden, an ally and friend of Sayla's since their days serving together as Federal Forces soldiers aboard the _White Base_ during the One Year War.

Eighteen years ago, 2Lt. Sayla Mass and 2Lt. Kai Shiden were space fighter craft and mobile suit pilots for the Earth Federation Forces. Sayla and Kai's friendship had gotten off to a rocky start. On the day they first met in September, U.C. 0079 following a Zeon attack on the Side 7 space colony where they had resided, Sayla had slapped Kai and called him a coward for refusing to help locate remaining refugees in the colony. In those days, Kai had indeed been a coward, and cared little for the likes of Sayla, Captain Bright Noah, 2Lt. Amuro Ray, Sgt. Hayato Kobayashi, and others who forced Kai to act like the soldier that he did not feel he was meant to be.

Nevertheless, Kai's piloting of the RX-77 Guncannon became instrumental to the _White Base_'s survival, and following his fateful encounter with the tragic Zeon spy Miharu Latokie in Belfast, Ireland, Kai discovered a courage he had never known that he had, as well as a commitment to peace and justice that the once-selfish young man had never realized himself to be capable of.

After the conclusion of the One Year War, Sayla and Kai went their separate ways, and contact between them was infrequent. Sayla completed the medical degree that she had been working on at the University of Side 7 when the war disrupted her studies. At the same time, Kai studied journalism and eventually became an investigative reporter for the AEUG, helping the AEUG to expose the brutality of the Earth Federation Forces' Titans Corps. After Sayla's brother, Char Aznable, had failed in his attempt to create nuclear winter on Earth by dropping the asteroid fortress Axis onto the planet in U.C. 0093, Kai responded to Sayla's call to begin a movement for peaceful Spacenoid independence. Sayla's goal is to resurrect her late father's old dream after a quarter century of war, death, and desolation. Kai assists Sayla in this quest by using the skills he has acquired in intelligence and information-gathering to direct the fledgling Independent Spacenoid Republic's Information and Intelligence Bureau

Kai and Sayla embrace as friends who have shared dozens of life-and-death experiences over the years do. Although they were frequently at one another's throats when they served together aboard the _White Base_ during the One Year War, eighteen years later, there is only warm camaraderie between them.

"It's good to see you again, Kai," Sayla says with the radiant smile that Kai remembers as being seen too infrequently aboard the _White Base_ all those many years ago (Sayla had been something of a cold fish in those days, especially towards Kai), "it's been eight months since you've visited in person."

Kai rejoins, "In the line of work I do, the less I'm seen, the better." In his days as a Federal Forces soldier, Kai Shiden had been known as a practical joker and a loose cannon - the kind of guy whose mouth couldn't be kept shut with mobile suit armor rivets. Sayla cannot help but appreciate the irony that Kai's career since the end of the One Year War has revolved around the judicious keeping and selective sharing of secrets.

Sayla knows that if Kai has come to see her personally, his reasons cannot be social or trivial.

Kai says evenly, "My people have gotten some concrete information about the failure of the _Moonshadow_ operation."

Sayla draws in a deep breath. She has never approved of promoting the Spacenoid cause through violent means, but the information that Kai's bureau has gathered about the Earth Federation Forces' secret stockpile of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons has forced Sayla to relent to the urgings of the ISR's more militant senior leaders. Months earlier, Sayla reluctantly gave her approval to the hiring of mercenary mobile suit pilots Caitlin O'Rourke and Jordan Sinclair, and it pains her to have given her approval to an operation that cost the two young pilots their lives.

"Caitlin and Jordan were a very sweet couple," Sayla reflects, "and excellent mobile suit pilots as well. We selected them and paid them a great sum of money to ensure the success of the _Moonshadow_ operation. The safety of all Spacenoids depended on their success. And now, both of them are..."

Sayla trails off, unable to continue the terrible line of thought.

Kai continues for her, "You're right. Based on our previous intelligence, there shouldn't have been a single mobile suit pilot in all the Earth Federation Forces who could have neutralized O'Rourke or Sinclair, let alone both of them. That's before we found out about **her**."

Kai shows Sayla a photograph of a very attractive teenaged girl of East Asian descent. The girl in the photograph is dressed in a current Earth Federation Special Forces uniform.

Kai tells Sayla, "This girl's name is Jolie Minh. She's sixteen years old, and she was recruited into the Earth Federation Special Forces eight months ago. Minh was the one who took down both O'Rourke and Sinclair. Our people have also found out that she was instrumental in foiling Barron and Ferrario's attempt to steal the Gundam-100. Furthermore, this 'Jolie Minh' also wrecked an MA-08 Byg Zam that a rogue Side 6 Civil Defense officer was trying to sell to the Phobos Zeon forces."

Sayla considers the implications of what Kai is telling her, "So you think that this girl..."

Kai nods, "She's a Newtype, Sayla. She's like Amuro."

The mention of the name of her slain onetime lover wracks Sayla with a wave of pain. Resisting the flood of emotions within her, Sayla goes on to ask, "What do you recommend?"

Kai considers that, "Sending in more of our people to try to kill this 'Jolie Minh' will probably just be a waste of lives and mobile suits. Nevertheless, I do have some good news on that front: we've finally been able to secure the services of Shin Matsunaga and Braniff Oskar."

Sayla recognizes those two names, and that recognition prompts her surprise, "Those are the top mobile suit mercenary pilots in the profession..."

Kai affirms Sayla's declaration, "...professional and veteran killers in mobile suits...they make O'Rourke and Sinclair, with all due respect to both of them, look like bush leaguers in comparison."

Sayla is compelled to agree, "Matsunaga and Oskar are two of the most notorious pilots to have emerged from the One Year War. I'm glad the _White Base_ never encountered them during the war. Even Amuro would have had his hands full taking on either one of them."

Kai nods in agreement, "We've evaluated their abilities. They're actually BETTER than advertised. One would think that the years and age would erode their reflexes and skills, but they've actually gotten better with age. They might be twice as dangerous as they were during the war."

"Acquiring their services must have really dented the budget," Sayla observes.

"Not as much as you'd think," Kai replies, "Matsunaga and Oskar would each have cost us a fortune if either of them worked for money only. Fortunately for us, they're taking 'ideological sympathy' as a down payment. Both are willing to join us for a briefcase of gold bullion, and 'in' on the action against the Federation."

Putting away the last of her medical examination equipment into a drawer, Sayla notices a second photograph in Kai's hand, "What else do you have to share with me, Kai?"

Kai hesitates for a moment before showing Sayla the second photograph, "I think you'll find this even more intriguing than Jolie Minh was."

Kai shows the photo to Sayla. Sayla sees the image of another very attractive young woman, also an officer in the Earth Federation Forces...this one about two to three years older than Jolie Minh, and of European descent. There is something about the supremely confident, strikingly intelligent look in the eyes of the beautiful young woman in the photograph that unnerves Sayla...something familiar...something that reminds her of her late brother, Casval Rem Daikun, more commonly and infamously known as Char Aznable.

Beyond that, however, there is something else even more naggingly familiar about the pretty young redhead in the photograph...something that Sayla cannot quite place.

Kai tells Sayla, "This is Captain Athena Ibaz, nineteen years old, commanding officer of the Earth Federation Special Forces' Centurion Team. She's Jolie Minh's commanding officer, and she directed Minh in each of those operations that I mentioned."

All of a sudden, it clicks for Sayla, "Athena...Ibaz? Ibaz...Athena...Minerva Zabi?!"

Kai nods, his stare ominously intense, "There's no doubt that the commanding officer of the Centurion Team is the Heir of the Zabi Family."

Sayla slumps into a chair, unable to believe the revelation. The photograph of Athena Ibaz...no, Minerva Zabi, stares back at her mockingly.

At that very moment, on the other side of Cislunar Space in Side 7's Green Noah space colony, the subjects of Sayla Mass and Kai Shiden's discussion sit in a cigarette smoke-filled videoconference room, reviewing a holographic recording of the Centurion Gundam's recent battle against the ISRLA rebels that had hijacked the _Moonshadow._

Two nearly empty packs of cigarettes lie near the center of the conference room table, from where a crystalline device projects a holographic image recorded by the Black Box extracted from the Centurion Gundam. The cigarette smoke somehow enhances the quality of the image, making the laser-projection easier to see. That is hardly the reason, however, that Capt. Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh have smoked their way through eighteen cigarettes between them during the past two hours.

Jolie blows out a cloud of smoke as she relives the battle she barely survived just a few days earlier. She winces as she watches Jordan Sinclair's Quebeley savage her Centurion Gundam again, wrecking its head/camera unit and nearly tearing off its arm.

Seated across the table, Athena exhales her own lungful of smoke as she impassively resets the video for another scene of Jolie getting her mobile suit pummeled by Caitlin O'Rourke's Jagd Doga.

Jolie, having had enough of Athena's silence, finally blurts out, "Is there a point to all this, or do you just get off on watching me screw up?!"

Athena replies calmly, "I'm doing this to keep you alive."

Jolie rises to her feet, slamming her fists on the conference table, "Watching myself getting creamed again and again is supposed to help me stay alive? Go eat yourself, 'Thena!"

Ignoring her temperamental executive officer's outburst, Athena inhales another lungful of smoke and exhales it again deliberately before answering, "The greatest danger that an ace pilot faces is the belief that she's better than her opponent. That belief breeds overconfidence. Overconfidence breeds carelessness. Carelessness breeds self-destruction. Do you understand that, Lieutenant Minh?"

The emphasis that Athena places on enunciating on Jolie's new rank humbles the teenager for a moment. Jolie understands that Athena is doing this for her good, but still...

Athena turns off the video and turns on the conference room's lights. She rubs her eyes tiredly for a moment, then habitually pulls out her handkerchief from its customary resting place in the breast pocket of her uniform jacket. Athena tersely, but quietly wipes her fingers with the handkerchief for a moment, then repockets the handkerchief once again.

Jolie smiles. She has always found this particular idiosyncrasy of her friend and commanding officer intriguing and singularly debonair. Anyone else practicing such a personal habit, which Athena drifts into during moments of stress, would seem awkward and pretentious, but Athena does it with a peerless elegance and grace that is uniquely characteristic of her.

Jolie takes one of the final cigarettes from one of the packs on the desk and puts the cigarette into her mouth. Athena lights Jolie's cigarette with an old-fashioned wooden match, then uses the same match to light a fresh cigarette of her own.

As she blows out another cloud of smoke, Athena shows Jolie a bitter smile, "Maybe we should quit smoking. Lung cancer is an extremely painful way to die, I hear."

Jolie, inhaling deeply from her cigarette, replies on the exhale, "Oh, yeah. Definitely. If we don't quit smoking now, we're not gonna see thirty."

After a moment's silence, the two young women laugh, choking a bit on the cigarette smoke. The joke is that given their career choice, they are both unlikely to see thirty anyway. No matter how many cigarettes they smoke, or how many glasses of bourbon and whiskey they drink, they're still far more likely to die in the cockpit of a mobile suit than they are of lung or liver disease.

Such fatalism, perhaps, is endemic among soldiers.

After their laughter has subsided, Jolie pipes up, "Seriously, though, 'Thena. Do you really have any long term plans for life? Or do you think it'd just be a waste of time?"

Athena replies, "You already know my long term plan, such as it is. If I live long enough, I can make this goddamned world a better place than it's been during our lifetimes."

That much Jolie knows, and it's really not what she is asking about, "I mean personal. Haven't you ever thought about getting married? You know? Starting a family and settling down?"

Athena lets out a short laugh, as if Jolie had just her told the silliest joke that Athena has ever heard, and stubs out her last cigarette into the ashtray before replying, "It's never crossed my mind."

Jolie rests her chin in her hands, looking wistfully somewhere beyond the conference room's walls, "My dream is to settle down someday with a man that I really love, and start a family with him. Get back the life I had when I was a little girl, except I'd be the wife and mom this time."

Athena grins. She can almost imagine Jolie in those roles, "You know, if you want that dream to come true, you've got to help me make my dream come true first."

That much, Jolie understands. Athena's ambition is to create a world wherein tragedies like the one that had orphaned Jolie could never happen again. This is the reason that Jolie agreed to work with Athena in the first place.

Jolie asks, "And how far are we from achieving this dream, Athena?"

Athena becomes grim, "A long way...'many miles before we sleep,' Jolie. Robert Frost. American poet. 20th Century.'"

A call comes through the intercom, "Attention: Capt. Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh's presence are requested at the office of Col. Cairlay."

Hearing their names, Athena and Jolie rise immediately and begin heading towards Colonel Cairlay's office some ten stories above them.

The call of duty has found them again.

"Generals Noah and Blackhead will be attending this security conference with the Federation High Council in Shanghai, China on Earth," Colonel Cairlay tells the commanding and executive officers of the Aragon, Centurion, Gallant, Moscow, and Xerxes Teams, "and we believe that ISRLA assassins might make an attempt on their transports while they're vulnerable during atmospheric entry. Your five teams have had notable success in dealing with ISRLA insurgents in recent months, so the High Command has decided to give this assignment to you. The generals will be departing for Earth forty-eight hours from now. Do you have any questions?"

"A comment, if I may, sir," Captain Athena Ibaz offers.

"Go ahead, Captain Ibaz," replies Cairlay, fixing the pretty young officer in his unnerving gaze.

"Thank you, sir," Athena answers, "the recent _Moonshadow_ incident and the theft of the Gundam-100 prototype prove that our security is not, shall we say, as seamless as it should be. This Shanghai Conference, for example, is not public knowledge, and yet we have reason to anticipate that the ISRLA is likely to interfere."

"Are you suggesting a fifth column has infiltrated our ranks, Captain?" Cairlay ventures.

"I'm not inclined to make baseless accusations, particularly against our own comrades-at-arms, Colonel," Athena says evenly, "but it should be pointed out that not all of the civilian contractors upon whom the Federal Forces depend for supplies and transportation are necessarily or completely sympathetic to the Earth Federation Government, and these contractors are, by necessity, privy to some of our activities."

Colonel Cairlay nods. The facts illuminated by Athena are apparent enough, but the High Command has not been responsive to the Special Forces' requests for permission to plug intelligence leaks more effectively. Consequently, the Special Forces are forced to work from the disadvantaged position of reacting.

Nevertheless, the Federation's intelligence personnel have been far from valueless, and as if to prove it, Colonel Cairlay activates a holographic dossier.

"Let's consider that matter at a more germane time," the colonel says, "Central Intelligence has obtained information about what who will likely attempt a strike against the generals' transports. Ladies and gentlemen: these are the Blackbirds."

The profiles of three individual appear in the holographic display. One is a man of Caucasian descent in his mid-forties. The second is an ageless man of African heritage. The third is a woman of Asian descent likely in her late thirties."

"Dirk Kirscher, Mugabe Gazi, and Hyo-Kung Song," Colonel Cairlay identifies, "Collectively known as the Blackbirds."

"Those names and faces seem kind of familiar," remarks Captain Kenneth Ackerman, commanding officer of the Xerxes Team and veteran of the Gryps Conflict.

"That's not surprising," Cairlay remarks with a bitter smile, "they were all once our people...as members of the Titans."

There is the a collective intake of breath as tension seizes the conference room. _The Titans_. Twenty years earlier, before the current configuration of the Earth Federation Special Forces was established, the Titans had been the Federal Forces' elite anti-Zeon, anti-insurgent task force. The Titans were charged with crushing any sign of Contolist or Zeon insurrection before it could pose a threat. Led by Admiral Jamitov Haiman and Colonel Bosque Om, the Titans had performed their designated function too zealously and singlemindedly. By the mid-U.C. 0080s, the Titans had become nothing more or less than Haiman and Om's private army, to harass and murder Spacenoids at will. After the infamous 30th Bunch Incident that caused the loss of millions of lives in Side 1, the AEUG (Anti-Earth Union Government) was established by the reformist Blex Forra, a former Earth Federation Forces general who opposed the Titans at every turn.

"The Blackbirds saw action during the Gryps Conflict against both the AEUG and the Axis," Colonel Cairlay explains for the benefit of the younger officers, to whom all this is vaguely recalled history, "they were very effective piloting Barzam, Hambrabi, and Gapsray mobile suits in numerous campaigns during U.C. 0087 and early U.C. 0088. After the Battle of the Zedan's Gate, however, they disappeared and were listed as missing. They resurfaced three years ago as soldiers of fortune, willing to kill anyone for the right price."

"Why hasn't the Federation bought them out, then?" asks 2Lt. Jolie Minh, who has been silent until now.

Colonel Cairlay, still irritated by Jolie's undisciplined behavior and lack of respect for proper protocol, shoots the Centurion Team's beautiful young executive officer a reproving look before answer, "Even mercenaries have principles, Lt. Minh, as paradoxical as that sounds. Having served the Federal Forces once, and having left the service, the Blackbirds are loathe to return. Mercenaries do not give their loyalties to any particular party for too long. To do so, they feel, would diminish their value."

"How much value could they possibly have?" Jolie says, throwing her hands up in a gesture of incredulity, "They're old. I mean, for pilots, they're kind of old. And so are their mobile suits."

"Their experience makes them even more dangerous than they were previously, Lt. Minh," Colonel Cairlay says severely, "I'm sure Captain Ibaz has taught you that. As far as their mecha is concerned, you should not be so naive as to assume that they have been working with twenty-year outmoded mobile suits."

So saying, Colonel Cairlay brings up a new image on the holographic display. A mobile suit bearing some resemblance to a gladiator of classical antiquity appears. The mobile suit is the black of deepest space.

"This, ladies and gentlemen," Colonel Cairlay explains, "is the mobile suit AMX-140 Gellond, a new development of the Phobos Zeon Mobile Weapons Research and Development Department. It is based on the technology of the old Zeon MS-14 Gelgoog mobile suit and our own RX-93 Nu Gundam, which was lost in U.C. 0093 during the Second Neo Zeon War, but not before a rogue engineer at Anaheim Electronics had leaked the Nu Gundam's data to the Neo Zeon forces. We have reason to believe that the Quebird might match, if not surpass, the performance ability of even your Centurion Gundam, Lt. Minh."

Ten minutes later, 2Lt. Jolie Minh storms out of the conference room, her commanding officer Captain Athena Ibaz at her side.

"That Cairlay is a freakin' idiot," Jolie complains, "he kept going on about those 'Blackbird' losers like they're some kind of unkillable superpeople or something! Let me take 'em on and I'll...!"

"That's enough, Jolie," Athena says firmly, pulling the visor of her officer's hat low upon her head, "the colonel was right."

"Right?!" Jolie stops in her tracks and turns to Athena, incredulous anger in her pretty young visage, "What the...? Well, nice to know I've got your vote of confidence! Thanks for the stab in the back, 'Thena!"

Athena exhales before returning, "Have you been listening to anything I've been telling you? You're thinking with your ego, not your brain. That's going to get you killed, sooner rather than later."

Jolie, her anger boiling over, snaps back with, "Yeah... like you'd care!'

Athena shoots Jolie back an angry look of her own, but instead of saying anything in response, turns away and draws her handkerchief out to wipe her fingers.

Jolie realizes that she's gone too far. Biting her lip in sheepish remorse, Jolie looks down and says meekly, "I'm sorry, Athena. I didn't mean that. I know you care...that's why you're trying to tell me I can't beat the Blackbirds. It's just that..."

Athena repockets her handkerchief, turns around, and lifts the visor of her officer's hat a bit higher, letting Jolie clearly see her eyes. Putting her hands on Jolie's shoulders, Athena gives her friend a reassuring smile, "I know, Jolie. And I'm not saying you can't or won't defeat the Blackbirds. What I'm trying to get you to understand, though, is that not all battles are won by quick reflexes and deft maneuvers. You've got more raw talent as a pilot and a fighter than anyone else I've ever seen, but you need to learn to use your head in combat."

"I'm not you," Jolie says, "I don't have a 200 IQ, and I haven't read every book on military strategy ever written. You _write_ books on military strategy that other officers read. I just know how to cave people's faces in."

"You don't need to be the second coming of Sun T'zu," Athena tells Jolie, "but before you enter a battle, do you ever consider these: what are your enemy's habits and idiosyncrasies? What are your enemy's greatest strengths? What are his greatest weaknesses? Where are the weaknesses and vulnerabilities in your own combat technique? How might your enemy exploit that? You need to figure these things out before you go into battle, Jolie."

"How do I do that?" Jolie asks.

Athena says, "Give me some time to gather some information. For now, let's get down into the mecha pool and inspect the team's mobile suits. The rest of the team won't be back from their weekend leaves for another four or five hours, and the mechanics team is understaffed. I'll tell you more as we're working."

Athena puts a reassuring arm around Jolie's shoulders. The partners make their way to the mecha bay to assist in the maintenance of their team's mobile suits.

At an apparently abandoned warehouse in Anman City on the surface of the moon, three people gather for a furtive meeting to discuss equally secretive plans.

"This is the place, eh?" Mugabe Gazi says, looking around the cavernous hold, "Doesn't look like anybody's been here in years."

"Exactly what makes this a good place to meet," Hyo-Kyung Song replies, "we don't exactly want to advertise our presence."

"After this job," Dirk Kirscher comments, "we can all disappear for a long time...into retirement. There's this lakeside in Switzerland where I'm really looking forward to building a house, with a private boatdock and all."

Mugabe smiles, "Last time, you said you'd be building it on Maui. Why doesn't this dream house of yours ever get built, Kirscher?"

"Probably because he blows every one of his paychecks on wine and women," Hyo-Kyung muses.

"You two know me too well, don't you?" Dirk says with a killer handsome grin.

The three old friends laugh. Ever since the demise of the Titans, the Blackbirds have made themselves considerable personal fortunes as mercenaries. Charging one million credits each for an assassination or ambush job, they've only needed to work sporadically over the years. Gazi and Song's joking allusions to their friend Kirsher's spendthrift habits aside, they were comfortably wealthy and didn't need to take on jobs for money anymore. It was the thrill that brought them back into the game again and again. What greater ecstasy could life offer than hunting down and smiting an enemy from the sky with a well-placed beam cannon shot or missile? The only downside was the diminishing level of challenge offered by opponents.

"That must be our man," Dirk remarks, as he and his comrades note the approach of a shuttlecraft.

A thin man in his late thirties emerges from the shuttle, his grayish hair complementing his beady eyes. In his hand is a black briefcase.

"You must be Kai Shiden," Dirk says, offering his hand, "it's a pleasure. Heard a great deal about your exploits during the One Year War."

Kai shakes Dirk's hand, then offers it to Mugabe and Hyo-Kyung as well, "Heard a lot about you three too. It's funny. Ten years earlier, and we'd be on opposite sides."

"Yeah, well. Times change, and so do loyalties," Dirk replies, offering Kai a cigarette.

Kai declines, "No, thanks. I quit smoking two years ago."

"I suppose you need to be more health-conscious these days as Director of the ISRLA's Intelligence and Information Bureau, eh, Mr. Shiden?" remarks Hyo-Kyung Song.

"Actually," Kai replies, "I just got sick of the taste of tobacco smoke."

Mugabe says, "You've brought the information we requested?"

Kai opens his briefcase, "Yes, along with the first part of your agreed pay. One million credits each, with two million more after the successful completion of your mission."

Kai delivers a sealed pouch to each of the three members of the Blackbirds team.

"Open those," Kai instructs them.

The three pilots do. Within each pouch is a package of money, and a dossier of photographs.

"Your objective will be the Federation space shuttles _Centennial Eagle_ and _Night Sky,_" says Kai, "these shuttles will be departing Side 7 for Shanghai, China, Earth at precisely 23:18, Side 7 local time, on May 11. The shuttles will be carrying Federal Forces generals Bright Noah and Manron Blackhead, respectively. Your assignment: eliminate both shuttles and all passengers, no survivors."

"Two of the top commanders of the Federal Forces, eh?" Dirk Kirscher says, stubbing out his cigarette, "you ISRLA characters are pretty ruthless, which I can respect. But wasn't Bright Noah your commanding officer on the _White Base_ during the One Year War?"

Kai replies, "As you said yourself, Mr. Kirscher, times change and so do loyalties. Besides, Bright Noah and I never got along. I didn't like him, and I figure he wasn't too fond of me either. In any case, it's nothing personal. Just war. If he were on our side, I'd work with him."

"But since he's not," Hyo-Kyung says, "you're perfectly willing to kill him, if that's what your goals call for. Still, I'm surprised that Sayla Mass has agreed to it. Isn't she kind of close to Noah?"

"I never told Sayla about this operation," Kai confesses, "she would have never consented to it. She'll probably never forgive me after she finds out, but she will agree that it's necessary. In any case, it needs to be done."

"What's all this other stuff, then?" asks Mugabe, looking at the photographs in the dossier file.

"Whoo-wee!" Dirk exults as he studies photographs of Captain Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh, "who are these lovely creatures? Are these babes a bonus for Mugabe and me, here, Mr. Shiden? If so, what about poor Hyo-Kyung over there? She still isn't married yet, and she's pushin' 40!"

"You'll be pushing up weeds if you make another remark like that, Dirk," Hyo-Kyung says with a voluptuous grin. Although she lacks Athena and Jolie's fresh-faced youthfulness, the more mature Hyo-Kyung Song is a highly attractive woman in her own right.

Kai, ignoring the banter, says, "The Asian girl is Jolie Minh. She's probably the Federal Forces' top ace pilot right now. She's only been in the service for a few months, but she's already taken down a Byg-Zam and the elite team we sent to capture the _Moonshadow_. The kid is lightning in a bottle."

"She's the one who took down O'Rourke and Sinclair?" Dirk says with surprise, "Those two kids were damn good. We took part in some war games with them about two years ago, and we were pretty impressed by them. In a couple of years, they could have been as good as we are."

Mugabe says, "With that little experience, she took down two top aces. This Minh girl is dangerous."

"Yeah, but nothing we can't handle," Dirk protests, "Experience trumps raw talent anytime, and we've got way more than just experience working for us, right?"

Mugabe and Hyo-Kyung nod in agreement. As veterans, they are extremely proud of and confident in their abilities. This upstart Jolie Minh fails to intimidate them.

"And so who's this other hottie?" Dirk asks, turning the photo of Athena to Kai.

"Her name is Captain Athena Ibaz," Kai says, "she's Jolie Minh's commanding officer. She's an excellent tactician...maybe the best in the entire Federal Forces, including the senior officers. She's the brain that directs Jolie Minh's deadly skills. We have...a special interest in Captain Ibaz. It's important that you NOT, I repeat, NOT kill her, people."

"Oh?" Dirk says, "She somebody important?"

"You might say that," Kai replies cryptically.

Hyo-Kyung interjects, "But we don't need to take any such precautions with Jolie Minh, right?"

Kai replies, "Right. Jolie Minh, you may liquidate as you please."

"All right then," Dirk says, "it's settled. We'll report back to you here twenty-four hours after the mission is completed."

Kai shakes hands with the Blackbirds again, "Here's to your success, my friends."

Athena and Jolie are in the mecha bay of Garrison Noah, performing maintenance on Jolie's Centurion Gundam. The pair have exchanged their smart officer's uniforms for work coveralls, whose tight fit only helps to accentuate and flatter the two young women's appealing physiques.

Athena is seated in the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, hatch open, uploading data on the Blackbirds trio into the Centurion Gundam's combat computer. From the Federal Forces' central computer databank, Athena has extracted past combat logs from the Black Boxes of Federal Forces mobile suits wrecked by the Blackbirds over the years (and there have been plenty).

At the same time, Jolie is wielding a crescent wrench to secure a vital nut on the Centurion Gundam's left arm joint. The mechanics had replaced the arm entirely after it had been mangled in Jolie's battle against Jordan Sinclair and Caitlin O'Rourke, and although the mechanics had done good work on the replacement, Jolie doesn't want to leave anything to chance. Athena had taught her not to.

Satisfied that the nut is secure, Jolie floats down from the Centurion Gundam's left shoulder to the open cockpit hatch, "Hey, 'Thena!"

Without looking up from her uploading work, Athena asks, "Have you got that arm joint secure yet?"

"Yup," Jolie replies, "it's on tighter than a corsage around the belly of a sumo wrestler!"

Athena is amused by the image, but says nothing in response.

Jolie follows with, "So while I was working the wrenches and screwdrivers, you've been down here playing computer games?"

Athena says, "I'm uploading data on the Blackbirds' past attacks on Federation mobile suits into the Centurion Gundam's combat computer."

Jolie blinks in surprise, "Really? How'd you get that stuff?"

Athena replies, "After the One Year War, the Federation has made a point to store all of the Federal Forces' combat data into its data network. They have literally every piece of data from every piece of mecha ever deployed by the Earth Federation Forces since U.C. 0080."

"Cool," Jolie says, "so when I go to fight the Blackbirds, I'll have the inside track on all their tactics?"

"You might say that," Athena answers, wrapping up the upload, "but like I've been telling you: you need to think your way through it. I've forwarded the data uploaded into the Centurion Gundam's combat computer into your personal Datapad. I want you to study that information carefully, taking note of the enemy's strengths, weaknesses, and habits, especially in comparison to your own. While you do that, I'll have to get you more updated information."

"More updated info," Jolie wonders, "from where? Isn't it all in the data network?"

"From past encounters with the Blackbirds," Athena points out, "but as Colonel Cairlay told us, they're using new mecha now. That information won't be in our database."

"Then how are we going to get it?" asks Jolie.

Athena shows a cryptic grin, "There are ways."

Meanwhile, in his office elsewhere at Garrison Noah, General Bright Noah is speaking to his wife and daughter at their home in Shanghai, Earth via videophone.

"I'm hoping to have at least a day to spend with you two after the conference wraps up," General Noah says to his wife, Mirai and their teenaged daughter, Chieming.

Mirai smiles at her husband from tens of thousands of miles away, "Well, at least in a year from now, Chieming can see her daddy more often. Your little girl has just submitted her application for the Federal Forces Officer's Academy, Bright."

Bright beams proudly, "That's my girl."

Chieming, a cute, vivacious girl of sixteen who has inherited her parents' modest good looks, appears from behind her mother, "Mom says that you won't have a moment's peace after I go up there to look after you, Daddy."

Bright grins, "Actually, you'll probably be the only peace I get up here. Seriously, sweetie, maybe we should change places. You can join the Federal Forces and Daddy will retire, how does that sound?"

"Think they'll give me a battleship to command?" Chieming teases her father fondly.

"With my reputation in the Federal Forces, not likely," Bright returns, "they'll probably assign you to a garbage scow somewhere in the Asteroid Belt..."

Mirai, who has been watching her husband and her daughter share their first conversation in months with fondness, suddenly turns serious, "Bright..."

"Yes?" Bright responds probingly, his instincts alerted by the sudden change in the tone of his wife's voice. Bright already has a sense of where the conversation is about to turn.

Mirai says, "We...we've heard from Hathaway. He recently..."

"I don't want to hear about it," Bright says darkly, "we have no association with that person anymore."

Mirai says pleadingly, "Bright, Hathaway is your son! No matter what he might have done..."

Bright cuts his wife off bitterly, "He's a traitor, Mirai, and a murderer. If I ever see him again, I will make sure he's prosecuted for his crimes."

Mirai tries imploringly again, "But Bright..."

Bright says, "I don't want to discuss it anymore, Mirai. I look forward to seeing you and Chieming later this week. We'll enjoy some time together. I need to get back to work. Bright, out."

Bright turns off the videophone and sits brooding at his desk. The subject of his son, Hathaway, has been a sore point for the past four years.

Bright had once been very proud of his son Hathaway...a bright and talented boy, very devoted to his family and good at heart. When Char Aznable had attempted to drop Axis Fortress on Earth in U.C. 0093, Mirai Noah had only been able to secure passage into space for her son, Hathaway. Hathaway rejoined his father aboard the Federation Forces' battleship _La Kailum_, of which Bright was the commanding officer. There, Hathaway had met the legendary Earth Federation Forces' hero and ace pilot Captain Amuro Ray and Amuro's then-lover, 2Lt. Chan Agi, a Federal Forces' engineer responsible for the maintenance of Amuro's mecha, the RX-93 Nu Gundam. Hathaway also met the Newtype girl Quess Parayana, with whom he became infatuated immediately.

Quess, a fractious and unstable young woman, was seduced by Char Aznable and recruited into the Neo Zeon Forces, where she was trained to pilot the mobile armor NZ-333 Alpha Azieru. This powerful mecha caused terrible casualties among the Federal Forces until it, along with its pilot, were accidentally destroyed by a Federal Forces mobile suit piloted by Chan Agi. In a fit of rage over Quess' sudden death, Hathaway Noah killed Chan Agi. It was his first murder.

Quess' death devastated the young Hathaway. His hope had been to run away with Quess, where they could start a new life together free from the warfare and strife caused by adults. Hathaway blamed Quess' death on his father, on Amuro Ray, and on Char Aznable. It was because of the Earth Federation and the Archduchy of Zeon that Quess, like so many others, was dead.

Hathaway's killing of Chan Agi subjected him to charges of murdering a Federal Forces' officer...a crime entailing a penalty of either life imprisonment or death. Against his sense of duty and priority, Bright used his influence as a senior officer and Federal Forces hero to help Hathaway flee from the authorities. At that point, Bright was still able to see his son as a good man, albeit one who had been misled by his own passions into a tragic mistake.

In the years since, however, Hathaway Noah has resurfaced as a mercenary, spy, and assassin for the ISRLA, with whom he began associating two years earlier. Hathaway has been connected to a string of terrorist attacks on Earth Federation targets during the past two years, and his hateful anti-Federation screeds have been published in both fringe Contolist pamphlets and mainstream media outlets. Hathaway Noah has become an embarrassment to his father, to say nothing of a dangerous potential enemy. Despite the shame with which Bright has come to view his son, he acknowledges that Hathaway remains a brilliant and talented young man, with a natural charisma and a gift for strategy.

At a bar in Shanghai on Earth, a young man orders another glass of scotch, his third of the evening.

Another, somewhat older man pays the tab for him.

Hathaway Noah, a handsome eighteen year old youth, thanks the man paying for his drink with a nod, and says, "So if your three little birdies up there somehow don't manage to get the job done, you want me to finish it down here?"

The other man, Kai Shiden, replies, "The White Wolf will back you up."

"So the wolf has come down from the North," says Hathaway, sipping at the scotch, "to prey upon the creatures of the meadows."

"Given your connection to one of the targets," Kai says, "your role is an important one. Few know Bright Noah better."

"So you're asking me to commit patricide," Hathaway responds.

"I'd have never asked if I thought you were incapable of it," comes Kai's answer.

Hathaway is indeed capable of it. After Quess died, he had come to hate his father. His father...the hypocrite. Loyally serving the corrupt and cowardly Earth Federation Government after all that he had seen them do to Spacenoids. Hathaway would call no such man "father." Indeed, Hathaway had kept his father's name only to bring shame to it.

"The man gave me life," Hathaway admits, "but I will give him death. What does family matter in the struggle for humanity's future? If I survive, I'll live a better life than he ever did."

Kai Shiden grins, and places a briefcase on the bar counter, "Everything you need to know is in this briefcase, including the location of and activation code for a mecha we have prepared for your use, if necessary. With the White Wolf covering the actual execution, however, you probably won't need to use it. Just a precaution."

Kai calls for the bill and prepares to leave. He turns to Hathaway one more time to add, "It's best that you keep a low profile until the operation is over. I know that there is family that you still care about here in Shanghai, but it would not be a good idea for them to see you before our work here is complete. If and when you do see them, however, say 'hello' to Mirai for me, for what it's worth."

Hathaway smiles bitterly at that, "You're making plans to assassinate her husband, and you're still offering greetings to her? Mixed signals, Mr. Shiden."

Kai replies, "Wars upend everything, son. Friendships being the first casualties, typically."

The next day, Athena has the Centurion Team gathered in their own conference room at their residence facility.

"Generals Noah and Blackhead will be attending an unannounced security conference with the heads of the Earth Federation Government in Shanghai, China on Earth," Athena tells her team, "our team and four other teams have been ordered to provide security for the generals' transports on the way down to Earth. We'll be escorting the transports to the edge of Earth's atmosphere. As a precaution, all of our mobile suits will be equipped for atmospheric reentry and terrestrial combat."

The members of the Centurion Team understand that to mean that their mobile suits will be fitted with Vollute systems, a combination parachute/ramjet that would slow their mobile suits adequately enough that they do not overheat and disintegrate from the friction of atmospheric reentry. Atmospheric reentry is undoubtedly the most dangerous conditions for mobile suit operations, especially if actual combat occurs simultaneously.

Athena continues, "We're anticipating a possible attack by a team of soldiers of fortune called the 'Blackbirds.' They are former Titans ace mobile suit pilots who have caused a great amount of damage to the Federal Forces during the past twenty years. Records of their past actions against Federation targets have been uploaded to your MS combat computers and personal Datapads. I want you to study them carefully."

Corporal Anna Horowitz asks, "What about the generals' security after they enter Earth's atmosphere?"

"A special escort squad from Shanghai Whampoa Base will be handling that," Athena replies.

As the members of her team study the information in their Datapads, Athena adds, "Supplemental information will be provided to you shortly about the enemy's mobile suits. They will be using a new model designated AMX-030 Gellond, produced by the Phobos Zeon Principality."

"Alexander Miguel," Jolie snarls under her breath.

Ignoring that, Athena tells her squad, "All right. You're dismissed until 18:00 tonight. Before that hour, I want mobile suit maintenance checks and all other equipment checks completed and documented."

The Centurion Team salutes as one, "Yes, ma'am."

An abandoned warehouse in Industria Colony...

A large, unmarked transport docks with the colony...typical of the spacecraft used to haul in unprocessed scrap metal or haul out recycled materials from Industria on a regular basis.

This particular transport, however, carries a cargo that is anything but typical.

The pilot of the shuttle disembarks, and is greeted by two men and a woman.

"Recycling business pays well these days?" Dirk Kirscher asks the pilot casually.

"We all pay and pray, eh?" the pilot answers.

The proper pass phrases exchanged, the men shake hands.

"I'm 1Lt. Adam Storm of the Army of the Principality of Phobos Zeon," says the pilot, "Colonel Davenport ordered me to deliver these mecha to you."

Dirk leads his comrades Mugabe Gazi and Hyo-Kyung Song into the hold of the enormous transport craft. Within the hold are three sleek, black-colored mobile suits.

"They're just...beautiful," Kirscher enthuses.

"Powerful," Gazi agrees.

"But how do they perform?" Song thinks to ask.

"You may test them out immediately," 1Lt. Storm replies, "all three units are ready for full operation right now."

Ten minutes later, Dirk Kirscher fires a shot from the beam rifle of one of the Gellonds at a floating piece of space debris. The explosion of the debris causes other nearby floating objects to move about. After destroying the first piece of debris, the beam arcs towards a second target, then a third, a fourth, and finally, a fifth...disintegrating five large, mobile-suit sized pieces of metallic space debris before petering out.

"That's frigging awesome," Kirscher says, opening the visor on his normalsuit helmet.

"Yes," 1Lt. Storm says from the mobile suit's passenger seat, "Phased Tracking Beam Weaponry. Allows you to track and strike five targets in succession on a single shot. The beam tracks motion to hit the nearest moving target."

"Excellent," Mugabe Gazi comments, "we can't fail with these new weapons."

"General Miguel looks forward to your success," Storm adds, "and hopes you will consider entering his service after you've completed this operation for the ISRLA."

The Blackbirds look at each other as if to consider it. The Principality of Phobos Zeon is wealthy, and General Alexander Miguel is known to be generous to those who serve him well.

Retirement could wait.

0330 the following morning at the Centurion Team's barracks. Captain Athena Ibaz enters 2Lt. Jolie Minh's private quarters.

Jolie is fast asleep. Athena turns on the room's overhead lighting, filling the small space with white illumination.

Jolie buries herself in the covers, wrapping her blankets around her as if she were a mummy...or a human burrito.

"You got something against sleep?" Jolie's muffled voice comes irritably from under the covers.

"You'll be sleeping for a long, long time if you don't get up now," Athena replies, "I've gotten the data on the Blackbirds' Gellond mobile suits."

That arouses Jolie. The pretty teenaged mobile suit pilot pokes her head out of the covers, long, luscious hair all askew, "Data on the Gellonds? Really? How did...?"

"Never mind that," Athena says, "get dressed and report down to the conference room."

Fifteen minutes later, the Centurion Team is gathered in its conference room. They are all somewhat bleary-eyed from having been roused from their sleep, but Athena figures that cutting short their sleep by thirty minutes is definitely worthwhile if it means keeping them all alive.

Athena has a graphic of the Zeon mobile suit Gellond on the holographic display, "The Gellond is the latest upgrade of the Gelgoog series mobile suit. Its engine output is thirty percent greater than that of a Geara Doga, and its speed and maneuverability are more or less equivalent to those of our own Jegans. The three units that have been assigned to the Blackbirds are probably upgrades on the standard model, with improved avionics and combat data processors."

The Centurion Team members take notes...except for Jolie, who appears a bit spaced out.

Athena notes that with mild irritation, but continues, "What you'll need to watch out for is the Gellond's multi-target tracking beam rifle system. This new weapon enables the Gellond to hit five separate targets in sequence with a single shot from its beam rifle. It accomplishes this with a new kind of motion tracking device that our scientists and engineers haven't been able to completely figure out yet."

The Centurion Team members mumble nervously among themselves about the enemy's fearsome new weapon. They are apprehensive about going up against this new technology against which they have no counter or protection.

Jolie yawns softly, but audibly.

Athena says, "Lieutenant Minh, do you have a question or comment?"

Jolie stretches before answering wearily, "No, ma'am. Just need to watch out for this multi-tracking thingamajig..."

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes and shake her head, Athena goes on, "Lieutenant Minh and I will take the point on counterattack if we encounter the Blackbirds during the operation. The priority for the rest of you will be to support the other Special Forces units in protecting the _Silverthread_ and the _Nightwing_. Generals Noah and Blackhead must arrive on Earth safely, is that understood?"

The Centurion Team salutes as one, "Yes, ma'am!"

"All right then," Athena says, "you're dismissed to breakfast in the commissary. We'll reassemble at Garrison Noah at 0600. We'll be spending the day making final inspections on our mobile suits and reviewing procedures for atmospheric combat."

As the Centurion Team begins to depart, Athena turns to Jolie, "Lieutenant Minh, I'd like you to stay behind for a moment."

_Looks like my English muffin and orange juice will have to wait until after the lecture_, Jolie sighs.

"Yeah, what do you want, 'Thena?" Jolie says, "Little pre-breakfast yelling to start the morning off right?"

"I never yell at you," Athena says softly...which is a fact that Jolie must concede. Constantly nag, yes, but Athena never yells at her.

Athena tells Jolie, "This operation is important. Generals Noah and Blackhead will likely be receiving new orders from the Earth Federation High Council regarding the ISRLA and the Zeon remnants. The ISRLA and Zeon know this too."

Jolie replies, "Are you so sure there's going to be an attack? I mean, this whole thing is top secret, right? Even the press doesn't know about this conference."

Athena shakes her head, "Federation security has been like a sieve lately. The Gundam-100 was supposed to have been a secret too. Look what happened."

"And," Jolie points out, "you were able to get classified information about the Gellond mobile suits. Even I know that you don't have the security clearance for that info, 'Thena."

Athena grins slightly, "You're learning."

"So then just how did you get the data?" Jolie asks.

Athena says cryptically, "Special Forces officers are like magicians. Both conjure things impossibly out of thin air, and both will never tell you how..."

Eighteen hours later, the Earth Federation Forces space shuttles _Silverthread_ and _Nightwing_ sit in a launch hangar of Garrison Noah, their fusion-powered engines warmed up and awaiting ignition. Maintenance technicians make final checks on both spacecrafts' external shells, which must be in optimal condition for atmospheric re-entry.

General Bright Noah is already aboard the _Silverthread_, as is his counterpart, General Manron Blackhead, aboard the _Nightwing_.

In the cabin of the _Silverthread_, General Noah records an entry into his personal log, "...hoping the conference on Earth will be productive. The ISRLA insurgency is spreading...growing stronger by the day. Our greatest fear is that it will ally itself with the surviving Neo Zeon elements in the outer solar system, particularly Phobos. I...I'm still hoping that Sayla Mass will be able to steer the ISR movement towards a more peaceful approach. Ms. Mass served under me on the _White Base_ during the One Year War, and I trust her. Nevertheless, the need to remain vigilant is urgent as always. My hope is that the Federation High Council..."

Nearby, the Centurion Team and four other Special Forces units are making final checks on their mobile suits. Particular attention is given to the MS's vollute re-entry packs, which they don't plan on using because the Special Forces have been assigned only to the edge of Earth's atmosphere (at which point, security forces from Earth will take over).

That evening, at 23:05, Side 7 local time, Captain Athena Ibaz, 2Lt. Jolie Minh, and the twenty-three other mobile suit pilots from the Aragon, Centurion, Gallant, Moscow, and Xerxes Teams seal the O-rings of their normalsuit collars and the reinforced Plasglas visor shields of their helmets. Combat computer systems are engaged. Twenty-five mobile suits step onto hydraulics catapults that hurl the armored combat mecha from the airlocks of Garrison Noah into the black emptiness of cosmos.

At precisely 23:18, Side 7 local time, the Earth Federation Forces space shuttles _Silverthread_ and _Nightwing_ launch from Garrison Noah in Side 7, _en rout_ to the Federation's Shanghai Whampoa Base on Earth.

During the past forty-eight hours, reconnaissance flights of Federal Forces AWAC units have swept the re-entry azimuth that the two shuttles would be traveling upon during their descent into Earth's atmosphere. The reconnaissance crews have detected nothing amiss...nothing that would pose a threat.

In this era, however, in which the Minovsky particle has rendered long-range monitoring and tracking all but impossible, dangers often go undetected until they strike. To venture into the cosmos is to venture into potential ambush.

An unassuming commercial cargo craft approaches LaGrange Point Three, apparently on course to Side 7. In thirty seconds, it will come within range of the Side 7 Zone, at which time it will likely be intercepted and ordered to turn back by Federal Forces patrol units.

In less than a third of those thirty seconds, three mobile suits rapidly disgorge themselves from the cargo bay of the shuttle. Three mobile suits painted the black of the endless cosmos.

Dirk Kirscher, Mugabe Gazi, and Hyo-Kyung Song - Blackbird Leader, Blackbird Two, and Blackbird Three. The three are silent as stones as their triplicate mobile suits speed toward their targets of destiny. Radio silence must be maintained to avoid prematurely revealing their presence, but there is really no need to communicate - at least not verbally. Three minds had become one through years of cooperation. Three sets of deadly reflexes. Three heralds of hell.

"Re-entry azimuth attained," reports the _Silverthread_'s navigator from the shuttle's cockpit, "will make contact with outer atmosphere in T-Minus 600 seconds and counting."

Aboard the _Nightwing_, another navigator issues a similar report.

The navigational control tower at Shanghai Whampoa Base acknowledges the twin reports, "Roger that, _Silverthread_ and _Nightwing_. Escort squadron from Earthside will be making contact with you in T-Minus 0480 seconds and counting."

Inside the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, Jolie suddenly experiences a throbbing headache, "Oooooh."

Hearing Jolie's moan, Athena opens communications to the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, "Centurion Leader to Centurion Two. Are you all right, Jolie?"

"Bad headache...all of a sudden...heavy pressure...in head," Jolie replies.

A few seconds later, Athena begins to feel it too, albeit at a lesser intensity than Jolie does, "You're right...I'm also sensing it here."

Athena has a strong hunch about what her and Jolie's sudden headaches mean.

Athena quickly issues an order to Corporal Anna Horowitz, "Anna, position your AWAC unit directly above the _Silverthread_."

"Yes, ma'am," Anna replies as she complies with her commanding officer's orders.

At a distance of 10,000 meters behind the two shuttles and their escort squads, Blackbirds Two and Three draw beads on the engine blocks of the _Silverthread_ and _Nightwing_, respectively. The beam rifles of the two Gellond mobile suits, primed and charged, are a heartbeat away from unleashing their lightning.

Swift execution from the heavens.

"Detect anything?" Athena inquires.

Anna replies, "Nothing, ma'am. Just some...wait a second. Heat source building at my 12 o'clock position."

Alarmed, Athena transforms the Cour De Leon from Waverider into mobile suit mode. Athena points the beam rifle of her mobile suit in the direction being fed into the Cour De Leon's combat computer from the computer of Anna's GM-IV AWAC. Even as the Cour De Leon fires a ruby red beam from its rifle, Athena notices that Jolie's Centurion Gundam is doing the same.

Blackbird Two and Blackbird Three narrowly dodge the incoming beams of the Cour De Leon and the Centurion Gundam's cannon. Gazi and Song's own beam cannon, already primed, must fire...but the shots go astray.

"We've got to retreat!" Gazi bellows, breaking the radio silence that is now superfluous, "Got to abort the mission!"

"No," Dirk Kirscher replies calmly, "we've lost the element of surprise, but we can still accomplish the mission. Spread out. Don't let them concentrate their counter fire on us."

The three Gellonds of the Blackbird Team vector away from each other, Kirscher to the vertical twelve position and Gazi and Song to the respective nine and three positions.

Song points out, "Did you two feel a sudden pressure in your heads about an instant before those two shots came at us?"

"Newtypes," Gazi agrees, "the mobile suits guarding those two shuttles are piloted by Newtypes. It's probably that Jolie Minh and Athena Ibaz that Shiden warned us about!"

Kirscher smiles, "You're probably right. The Federation's White Phoenix and her commander."

Another shot lances forth from somewhere among the Federation convoy; Kirscher senses it a split second before it arrives and narrowly dodges the strike.

"Enough talk," Kirscher says, "Mugabe, Hyo-Kyung: keep the enemy occupied. I'll go after the shuttles."

"Roger, commander," Gazi and Song reply.

"Anna, can you confirm a hit?" Athena asks her reconnaissance specialist.

"Negative, ma'am," Anna replies, "my sensors register negative evidence of impact."

"Damn," Jolie grates, "how could both of us have missed?!"

"Calm down, Jolie," Athena says, "remember what I told you."

Athena opens communications channels to all Special Forces mobile suit units, "This is Centurion Leader. All of you: fall back and form defensive perimeters around the shuttles. Centurion Two and I will identify and neutralize the sources of that beam fire. Come on, Jolie: you're with me. Let's go!"

The Cour De Leon and Centurion Gundam vector away from the convoy.

Jolie tries hard to calm herself and follow Athena's directives, but it is very difficult for her to resist the urge to charge forth and turn the black skies white with bursts of fusion-powered lightning. She can take the Blackbirds...all three of them at once. She knows she can.

_Calm, calm, calm..._ Jolie whispers to herself, fighting the urges burning within her.

Jolie's tiny, silver-gloved hands shake violently even as they grip the control sticks of the Centurion Gundam tightly. Jolie feels her bloodlust rising like a ravenous beast from the depths of her soul.

Aboard the _Silverthread_, General Bright Noah watches the developments from the window of his seat with concern, but not alarm. A veteran of nearly twenty years of war, Bright has been in numerous situations as perilous as this.

An aide enters the passenger cabin of the shuttle from the spacecraft's cockpit, "General Noah, sir. With all due respect, sir, you should be getting yourself to the emergency escape capsule...just in case."

"No, Lieutenant," General Noah replies, "I don't think that will be necessary. The Special Forces will be able to handle this."

"But, sir..." the aide protests.

General Noah holds up his hand indicating his wish for the aide to let the matter drop. The aide reluctantly complies, and stands by to receive further orders.

Watching the explosions of beam fire outside the nearest viewport of the shuttle, Bright offers a silent prayer, "Mirai...Chieming...one way or another, I'll see the two of you soon..."

The situation is not nearly as calm aboard the shuttle _Nightwing_.

"Dammit, Lieutenant!" General Manron Blackhead rages, "What the devil is going on out there?!"

The aide replies, "The captain reports that there's been some beam weaponry fire nearby, sir. The Special Forces are now trying to secure the situation."

"Secure the situation?!" Blackhead roars, "The situation should have been secured long before we left Side 7! How could our intelligence people have NOT seen this coming?!"

The aide has no answer for the angry general, "I'm sorry, sir."

Blackhead lights a cigar and grumbles, "Whole lot of people are going to be sorry when this day is done!"

Dirk Kirscher, Blackbird Leader, has the _Nightwing_ bracketed squarely in the scope of his Gellond's beam rifle. Calmly, the veteran mobile suit pilot and assassin opens the safety on the trigger mechanism of his cockpit control.

His finger just begins to tighten around the trigger switch when an overwhelming sensation of stabbing pain fills his head.

Momentarily surrendering the initiative of striking at the _Nightwing_, Dirk Kirscher twists his Gellond away with acrobatic agility, narrowly avoiding two thirds of the half dozen missiles that vector onto the scene abruptly. Two of the missiles find their mark. The Gellond's tough Gundarium armor is able to absorb much of the damage, but the Gellond nevertheless begins to leak sparks and hot fluid.

"Port side maneuvering thrusters damaged," a synthesized voice reports from the Gellond's combat computer, "mobility of unit compromised 30, but still functional."

"Lost some of my speed," Kirscher remarks quietly.

Kirscher feels the pressure in his head again, less stabbing this time, but more clearly defined.

The beam rifle of the Gellond rises and arcs 44 degrees to the right, 14 degrees up.

"Die," Kirscher whispers coldly.

Bright yellow light erupts forth from the muzzle of the Gellond's beam rifle.

Psychic lightning bursts forth in a silver spark from Jolie's helmeted forehead.

Jolie gasps. She senses deadly beam energy reaching forth for her Centurion Gundam.

Like an enormous armored athlete playing a game of cosmic dodge ball, the Centurion Gundam spins and dashes away from the path of the incoming destructive beam. Shockingly, although the beam misses its target, it does not continue on its path, but arcs around, once more towards the Centurion Gundam.

Jolie senses the deadly energy approaching again and maneuvers the Centurion Gundam through a zero-gravity back flip, the killing beam missing her mobile suit by less than a meter.

_It's the multi-tracking beam weapon Athena was talking about..._ Jolie realizes.

The enemy's lethal energy beam, having missed its target twice, arcs around once again directly towards the Centurion Gundam's cockpit.

Within the last ten seconds, Jolie has already miraculously escaped fiery death twice. But is it possible for her to do it a third time? A fourth?

The beam, superheated nuclear energy at temperatures that rival the heart of the sun's, closes in at multi-mach speeds towards the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, whose armored shell, tough as it is, cannot survive such heat and impact.

Jolie stares into the face of death, but feels no fear.

Per Athena's orders, the Centurion Team and other Special Forces mobile suit units form a titanium-clad defensive perimeter around the _Silverthread_ and the _Nightwing_. They will only be able to maintain this perimeter for another 540 seconds, however, before the mobile suits' thrusters will be unable to push the suits out of the grasp of Earth's gravity. Word is received that the escort squad from Shanghai Whampoa Base is being delayed by extreme weather conditions.

Athena has broken off from the defensive squads to seek out enemy targets. In the distance, Athena sees the flash of beam rifle fire exchanged between Jolie's Centurion Gundam and at least one of the enemy units. As much as Athena wants to help Jolie, it's imperative that Athena locate and neutralize her own targets.

The interference of Minovsky particles renders the radar of the Cour De Leon useless, and even the sensors of Cpl. Anna Horowitz's GM-IV AWAC offers Athena nothing of use. Athena is forced to rely on her sharp eyes and the reach of her Newtype mind.

Athena decides to not wait for the enemy to come to her. She sets the missile pack launcher of her Cour de Leon, a payload of 54 short-range high explosive missiles, for wide dispersal, and opens fire.

Four and a half dozen missiles burst forth from their containment nacelles in the Cour de Leon's thruster/backpack unit. These arc omnidirectional from the Cour de Leon, rocket contrails exploding forth like a spider web of hellfire from their erstwhile host mobile suit.

Multiple explosions rock local space, detonating silently against the field of stars. Soon, the thruster contrails of Blackbird Two and Blackbird Three's Gellonds become evident.

Her enemies now exposed, Athena takes aim at Blackbird Three with her beam rifle and opens fire.

Blackbird Three reacts quickly, but not quickly enough to dodge Athena's shot completely. The beam strikes the Gellond's left arm, tearing it off and denying the Zeon mecha its arm-mounted defensive shield.

"Mugabe, I'm hit!" Hyo-Kyung Song calls out to her comrade, terror evident in her voice.

"Hang on, Blackbird Three," comes the large, dark-skinned mobile suit pilot's reply.

Mugabe Gazi's Gellond fires its beam rifle to where Athena's Cour de Leon had been, but the Federation mobile suit is gone.

To Gazi and Song's surprise, the beam does not arc in another direction to seek its moved target, but proceeds straight ahead into infinity.

"What th...?" Gazi rages in confusion, "Did Miguel's people sell us duds? This weapon is supposed to track moving targets!"

Gazi is correct. The Phased Tracking Beam Weapon is indeed designed to track moving targets. Knowing this, however, Athena fired her mobile suit's beam weapon, quickly vectored away, then cut the mecha's thrusters to rest it absolutely dead still in space...using carefully balanced and modulated vernier thrusters to maintain a relative stillness that renders the mobile suit undetectable to the beam's tracking mechanism.

Athena sees sparks leaking from Blackbird Three's damaged Gellond. Her target is easily visible now.

Athena levels the beam rifle of the Cour De Leon at Blackbird Three.

The beam fired from the rifle of Blackbird One's Gellond is almost upon Jolie's Centurion Gundam. Already, the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam is flooded with a hellish white light.

Aiming the Centurion Gundam's own beam rifle downward past the mobile suit's feet, Jolie takes a blind, desperate shot...her aim guided by something past her consciousness, but somehow, paradoxically, not past her control.

The collision between the two streams of powerful kinetic energy results in an explosion whose shock force throws the Centurion Gundam into a wild tumble.

Gripping the thruster controls tightly, Jolie fights to regain control...to regain balance. She scarcely has time to do so before another beam lances towards her.

Unconsciously mimicking Athena's earlier maneuver, Jolie fires off half of the Centurion Gundam's missile payload in random directions, at the same time bringing the Centurion Gundam itself to a near halt.

The beam of the Gellond arcs away from the Centurion Gundam to chase the Federation mobile suit's dozens of discharged missiles, finally expending its energy on the projectiles to leave the Centurion Gundam undamaged.

_Can't play this guy's game_, Jolie tells herself, _his tracking beam is going to get me sooner or later. I've got to get in close and take him down now._

Using her powerful Newtype PSI-abilities, Jolie pinpoints the location of Blackbird Leader. It doesn't take long for her to locate him: she fixates on the darkest soul in the area.

Jolie unloads the rest of the Centurion Gundam's missile payload at the Blackbird Leader's Gellond.

Dirk Kirscher, not quite ready for Jolie's move, but nevertheless quick enough to counter it, raises the Gellond's beam rifle and opens fire. The beam disintegrates Jolie's missiles before they can strike his mobile suit.

An instant later, Kirscher comes to the realization that the missiles were not necessarily meant to destroy him. Instead, the harsh light and impact shock of their explosion mask the rapid approach of Jolie's Centurion Gundam.

The Centurion Gundam crashes armored feet-first into the Gellond of Blackbird One. The Zeon mobile suit is thrown backwards in space.

Inside the cockpit of the Gellond, Dirk Kirshcher is thrown around violently. Were Kirscher unhelmeted, the back of his skull would surely have been fractured. Were he not securely strapped to the seat, he would surely have been thrown head first into his mobile suit's forward monitor. As it is, Kirscher's breath is pulled from his lungs and the reinforced plastic of the restraints dig painfully into his flesh as the bone-crushing impact of the collision causes his mobile suit's internal systems to briefly short out before they cycle to life again.

Jolie presses the advantage. With a savage battle cry, Jolie unleashes the Centurion Gundam's beam saber and raises it for a merciless downward slash.

Kirscher, seeing his dark life flash before him, responds in kind, drawing out the Gellond's own beam saber to parry the incoming slash, a mere two meters from the main body of his mobile suit.

The Centurion Gundam and Blackbird Leader's Gellond are saber locked. Beneath them, the great blue mass of humanity's mother planet, its placid white clouds and tranquil turquoises ocean juxtaposed against the violent scene hundreds of kilometers above it.

Aboard both mobile suits, computer-synthesized voices issue a warning to the much-occupied pilots, "Warning: orbital integrity decaying. Complete orbital integrity loss in precisely three-hundred and twenty seconds."

Even as Athena's gloved finger tenses around the trigger mechanism of her Cour de Leon's control stick, she is rocked by the piledriving force of Mugabe Gazi's Blackbird Three ramming shoulder-first into her Cour de Leon. The Earth Federation Forces mecha is sent plummeting towards Earth.

_Have to regain control before I get too far ensnared by planetary gravity_, Athena thinks to herself.

Athena switches the Cour De Leon from mobile suit to Waverider mode. Now in the form of an aerodynamic fighter jet, she soars up away from Earth, past Blackbirds Two and Three.

Blackbirds Two and Three level their beam weapons in the general direction that Athena had soared towards, but their weapons are unable to draw a bead upon their fast-moving target. Mobile suit beam rifles are designed primarily for use against other mobile suits and space battleships. They are of limited use against fast-moving fighter air/spacecraft. Even the Phased Tracking Beam Weapon of the Gellond is no exception to this general principle.

Athena's Cour De Leon Waverider rushes back onto the scene like a vengeful jet-powered falcon. Before the two enemy mobile suit pilots can react, she transforms her Cour De Leon back into mobile suit mode, firing two shots. The first shot destroys the beam rifle of Blackbird Two, and the second shot forces the already damaged Blackbird Three further into retreat.

Deprived of his mobile suit's most potent weapon, Mugabe Gazi is forced to rely on the Gellond's close-in combat weapon…its double-bladed hyper beam naginata. This weapon similar to the one employed by the Gellond's ancestral mecha, the famous MS-14 Gelgoog deployed by the Archduchy of Zeon during the final month of the One Year War. The Gellond's beam naginata, however, has five times the power output of its ancestor's, and a few other nasty surprises as well.

Gazi raises the Gellond's beam naginata as his foe approaches.

Athena, knowing that her Cour De Leon's forward momentum is too great to reverse or stop in time, draws her own mobile suit's beam saber.

Mugabe Gazi proves to be highly skilled in the use of the Gellond's beam naginata, wielding it less in the traditional style of the Japanese weapon as in a similar, but somehow even more deadly style based on the spearfighting technique of Gazi's African ancestors…a skill that Gazi had mastered as a boy under his father's tutelage in their homeland in Earth's Serengeti region.

Athena, whose own skills with a mobile suit's beam saber are more influenced by European combat styles, finds herself hard-pressed to parry. Mugabe Gazi's intricate and complex swordfighting style is too refined and too aggressive for Athena to handle effectively.

_He's too good with that weapon,_ Athena reflects, _I'm not going to beat him like this._.

In the distance, Hyo-Kyung Song's Gellond arcs back onto the scene, headed not for towards the Cour de Leon, but past it towards the space shuttles _Silverthread_ and _Nightwing_.

Athena attempts to give pursuit, but is forced to parry another slash from the beam naginata of Gazi's Gellond. Athena knows she will be unable to lend any direct assistance to the shuttles until she can shake off her attacker...a prospect that looks dubious at best at the moment.

Athena opens communications to the other Special Forces pilots, trying to maintain her focus on defending herself from Gazi's relentless attacks even as she gives orders, "Centurion Leader to all units! Incoming enemy unit! Protect shuttles at all cost! Repeat: at all cost!"

All cost...even the lives of two Special Forces officers, if necessary.

Nearby, the beam saber of Jolie Minh's Centurion Gundam disarms and removes the left arm of Dirk Kirscher's Gellond.

Jolie draws the Centurion Gundam's beam saber back and prepares to plunge the energy blade into the main body of the Gellond, _Got him!_

Not quite. In her rush to finish off her damaged and apparently vulnerable enemy, Jolie forgets that Kirscher still has his mobile suit's beam rifle, now fully recharged and ready for another shot…at point blank range.

Inside the cockpit of the Gellond, Blackbird Leader smiles, _Got you now, Gundam._

Jolie jets the Centurion Gundam backwards a mere second before the beam erupts forth from the Gellond's beam rifle. White death approaches Jolie.

The Guncannon 100 and Jegan mobile suits of the five Special Forces Teams assigned to escort the _Silverthread_ and the _Nightwing_ continue to blast away in the general direction of the Blackbird Team. Captain Athena Ibaz has instructed her fellow mobile suit pilots to disregard the possible danger to her and 2Lt. Jolie Minh and protect the two shuttles at all cost.

Aboard her damaged Gellond, Blackbird Three (former Titans 2Lt. Hyo-Kyung Song) refocuses on her team's original objective. With Blackbird Two (Mugabe Gazi) occupying Athena and Blackbird Leader (Dirk Kirscher) battling Jolie, Blackbird Three breaks off to attack the space shuttles bearing two of the Earth Federation Forces' senior officers.

Although her Gellond is heavily damaged and has lost its left arm to Athena's Cour de Leon, Song proves to still be more than a match for the Special Forces pilots left guarding the shuttles. Deftly dodging the fire from the Guncannon-100s and GM-IVs, Song unleashes a quick succession of beam rifle shots that immolate nine of the twenty-three mobile suits left guarding the shuttles. One of the beam rifle shots even scores a glancing hit on the _Silverthread_, causing smoke and sparks to pour forth from the hull of the shuttle.

Aboard the _Silverthread_, General Bright Noah grits his teeth through the impact. Peering out of the window nearest his seat, the general notices the smoke and sparks trailing from one of the shuttle's wings.

Bright uses the ship intercom to contact the cockpit of the shuttle, "Captain Donatelli! What's our situation?"

The pilot of the _Silverthread_ replies, "The damage to our wing is pretty severe, sir. I recommend we abort the landing and call for help."

Bright agrees with the captain's assessment. In atmospheric re-entry, even the slightest damage to the re-entering spacecraft could have catastrophic results. It would be beyond foolish to attempt a re-entry with the damaged _Silverthread_, and Garrison Noah back at Side 7 is too far to attempt to return to now.

It becomes a moot point, however, as Hyo-Kyung Song's Gellond closes in on the already damaged _Silverthread_, once again leveling its beam rifle at the burning space shuttle.

Above, Athena struggles to maintain her defense against Mugabe Gazi's deadly beam naginata strokes. Gazi's attacks are swift and relentless. Athena can only parry; she is unable to break free.

_Jolie..._ Athena's mind reaches out desperately.

But 2Lt. Jolie Minh has her own problems.

Contrary to the perceptions of laypersons and civilians, the beam energy weapons used by space battleships and mobile suits do not fire beams of laser energy, but high-velocity megaparticles. Were the beam rifles of mobile suits truly laser-based weapons, Jolie would already be dead, because not even she is quick enough to dodge an incoming beam of light.

The hypercharged megaparticles that constitute the beam of a mobile suit's long-range beam weaponry move at a relatively modest velocity of 1/100 the speed of light...which, in practical terms, is still pretty damn fast...many, many, many times more than fast enough to be absolutely lethal at point blank range. Far, far, far too fast for any human being to react to after the fact, let alone attempt to evade.

2Lt. Jolie Minh, despite her superlative talents as a mobile suit pilot, is only human. Newtype though she is, even Jolie requires time for her brain to process incoming sensory data, process that information, and transmit that information to her motor muscles to maneuver her mighty Centurion Gundam.

The Newtype, however, sees past the dimension of time. Seconds before Dirk Kirscher squeezes the joystick trigger for his Gellond's beam rifle, Jolie senses the enemy pilot's intent. Instantly, Jolie jets the Centurion Gundam back away from the Gellond, putting hundreds of meters between the two mobile suits in the seconds that she has.

1.5 seconds separated the beginning of Jolie's reverse blast from the firing of the Gellond's beam rifle.

As she thrusts the Centurion Gundam backwards at the top of its fusion-powered rocket engines' throttle, Jolie raises the beam saber of her mobile suit in a gesture not unlike that of a baseball player preparing to knock an incoming pitch out of the ballpark.

When Jolie was a little girl, not many years ago, she had been a supremely talented athlete. Her father, Dominic Minh, had dreams of his little girl growing up to someday become a professional baseball star. Indeed, in the two years that Jolie had played competitive little league baseball at her elementary school, she was known for having never missed when at bat. To pitch a baseball at Jolie was to have her send it out of the ballpark for a home run...sometimes when it seemed like she was barely paying attention at the moment the pitch was thrown.

The Centurion Gundam raises its beam saber like a baseball bat. In her mind, Jolie sees images of those baseball games of her bygone childhood days.

The Gellond's beam of white death approaches silently, swiftly, inexorably.

The Centurion Gundam swings the beam saber in a graceful sidelong arc, even as it continues to jet backwards.

An instant later, a deadly explosion ensues. A mobile suit is vaporized; its gifted pilot nothing but memories.

A twirling slash of Blackbird Two's beam naginata nearly separates the head of Captain Athena Ibaz's Cour de Leon from its body. Athena ducks it with hardly a centimeter to spare, bringing up the Cour de Leon's beam saber to parry. Despite bringing all of her considerable training and skill in the use of a beam saber to bear, Athena feels that the enemy is simply toying with her…that he could destroy her mobile suit any time he chooses.

This is not exactly true. As relentless and complex as Mugabe Gazi's attacking strokes are, Athena is proving to be an incredibly difficult nut to crack. Gazi is quite impressed. Few enemies have ever been able to last two or three strokes against his beam saber strikes; the enemy pilot he now confronts has already lasted twelve.

Had the mobile suit pilots of the Special Forces Teams the luxury of standing by and observing the battle, they would have witnessed one of the most spectacular displays of beam saber prowess in the twenty-year history of mobile suit warfare. Gazi and Athena wield their respective mobile suits' weapons like two warriors out of an ancient _wuxia_ film. Later, Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe, who caught a glimpse of the battle while defending the _Silverthread_, would remark that the duel between Gazi and Athena reminded him of those ancient 20th/21st Century _Star Wars_ movies, with Gazi and Athena going at each other like the Sith and Jedi from those fanciful films that Geoff's great-grandfather's great-grandfather had enjoyed as a youth.

The Federation mobile suit pilots, however, have no such luxury, struggling to prevent Blackbird Three's damaged, but still deadly Gellond from doing further damage to the already crippled _Silverthread._

A heavy blast from Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said's Guncannon 100's shoulder-mounted heavy shell cannon breaks Blackbird Three's bead on the _Silverthread_, but the errant beam unleashed from the Gellond's beam rifle nevertheless immolates three more Special Forces mobile suits, and nearly nails Cpl. Sutcliffe's Jegan and Cpl. Horowitz's GM-IV AWAC unit.

"Careful, you guys," Sgt. Al-Said admonishes his squad mates.

An electronically processed voice enters the edge of Karim's consciousness, which is focused on the battle, "One-hundred and twenty seconds until atmospheric contact. Vollute deployment in one-hundred seconds unless unit resumes lower G-position."

_We're running out of time._ Karim grates.

General Bright Noah, shuttle pilot Captain Antonio Donatelli, and his co-pilot 1Lt. Mindi Dulfer have donned their Zero-G normalsuits and have boarded the _Silverthread_'s escape/re-entry capsule. Ejecting from the damaged space shuttle is now their only hope of survival, but ejection means loss of maneuverability. They will be a sitting duck for any further enemy attack, and should that not come, they would still face the prospect of minimally guided freefall into Earth's atmosphere.

_One hell of a way to travel to a conference,_ Bright reflects.

In his twenty years as an officer in the Earth Federation Forces, Bright Noah has experienced nearly every danger imaginable on the field of battle. He has faced apparent imminent death so often that it no longer fazes him.

This time, Bright tells himself, will be no different. He will either live to see more threats to his life, or finally meet his end here and now and never concern himself with it again.

It's that easy.

Or so Bright wishes.

As Bright straps himself with Captain Donatelli and 1Lt. Dulfer into the tight confines of the escape capsule, his inner calm is disturbed by two familiar and beloved faces.

_Mirai, Chieming…_. The thought of never seeing them again brings a creeping fear up Bright's spine. The fear is manageable…containable…but unavoidable.

And then, another name, another face, comes unbidden into Bright's mind…Hathaway.

His son.

They became estranged years ago. Bright had thrown his son out of his home, out of his family, out of his life. The man named "Hathaway Noah" had nothing in common with him anymore except a name, and Bright wishes it were in his power to take that back as well. His family had no place for traitors.

But now, as Bright faces the prospect of fiery death in the skies above Earth, he feels a tinge of regret in the midst of his resolve.

_Hathaway…son. Why? Why did you turn traitor?_

Perhaps the afterlife would offer answers that this life could not.

A synthesized voice interrupts Bright's thoughts, "T-minus thirty seconds to escape pod ejection. All passengers secure safety restraints and stand by for recoil shock."

Unknown to Bright and his pod-mates, Hyo-Kyung Song's Gellond is a mere one-hundred meters away and closing fast. The Special Forces mobile suits, unable to strike the Gellond without also hitting the crippled _Silverthread_, are forced the cease fire.

In Shanghai on Earth, Mirai Noah (nee Yashima) drops a vase she had been cleaning, her head suddenly stricken with a sharp pain.

Her sixteen-year old daughter, Chieming Noah, notices her mother's fainting spell and rushes forward to support Mirai, "Mom? Are you OK?"

"I-I'm all right…," Mirai says, gathering herself, "I just had this sudden pain and…your father…"

"Daddy?" Chieming asks worriedly.

Mirai pales, her eyes widen in horror, "Oh, Chieming. Your father is in grave danger!"

Mugabe Gazi's spearfighting technique was invented by his ancestors in the African wilderness on Earth many generations ago to subdue savage beasts many times stronger than men, and to overcome human enemies in the close quarters of jungle combat. It is unrelenting and intricate…reflecting thousands of years of progress and refinement in the art of slaying the enemy.

Athena Ibaz's beam saber technique combines her military training with the fencing and other European swordfighting techniques she had been trained in as a child, back when millions recognized her as Duchess Minerva Zabi, Sovereign of the Archduchy of Zeon. Those techniques, although developed for warfare centuries ago in medieval Europe, have become more aristocratic sport than combat technique. It is enough to overcome most enemy mobile suit pilots, who typically use the beam saber with the subtlety and refinement of a thug swinging a length of metal pipe in a street rumble, but not enough to defend against the refined strokes of a seasoned warrior such as Mugabe Gazi.

The beam naginata of Blackbird Two's Gellond lances forth at the speed of thought towards the cockpit of the Cour de Leon.

Athena knows that she has absolutely no chance of blocking the incoming strike.

Death imminent, Athena feels nothing but an ocean of calm. She has anticipated this moment for years.

She will not take her regrets with her; she will leave them here in this world.

The beam naginata arcs ever closer.

Mugabe Gazi smiles with the satisfaction of an imminent kill.

The tip of the beam saber digs quickly and cleanly into the cockpit, instantly melting the flesh and blood of its pilot.

In the cockpit of the Cour de Leon, Athena Ibaz blinks in disbelief as the scene unfolds before her. Almost too quickly for the senses to process, 2Lt. Jolie Minh's Centurion Gundam deftly plunges its activated beam saber deep into the central body of Mugabe Gazi's Gellond.

Without pausing to even reclaim its beam saber, the Centurion Gundam dives forth…past Gazi's immobilized Gellond, beam rifle first, towards where Blackbird Three is about to finish off the space shuttle _Silverthread_.

Regaining her senses, Athena directs her Cour de Leon to draw the still-activated beam saber of the Centurion Gundam from where it lies embedded in the overheating and self-destructing Gellond of Blackbird Two.

The Gellond explodes. Mugabe Gazi, one of the greatest mobile suit pilots in history, is now a part of the eternal cosmos.

Athena transforms the Cour de Leon to Waverider mode and takes off in the direction where she had seen Jolie's Centurion Gundam disappear.

_Now, you've got me following your lead, Jolie,_ Athena thinks to herself, a slight smile coming to her beautiful young face.

A synthesized voice reports, "Thirty seconds to atmospheric contact…"

The escape pod deploys from the burning wreck of the _Silverthread_. The sudden dislodgment of the pod from its mothercraft rocks the passengers violently. Momentarily, however, the pod is floating free in space, the blue and white mass of the Earth below it and the black emptiness of space offset by thousands of glittering lights above it.

Then there is a second, much more violent shock, thrashing the three passengers inside.

"Seems like something…grabbed us," Captain Donatelli surmises.

"Enemy mobile suit," Bright agrees.

Hyo-Kyung Song, Blackbird Three, clutches the _Silverthread_'s deployed escape pod in its one good arm, like a rugby player clutching the all-important gameball.

The bone-shattering force of Jolie Minh's Centurion Gundam slamming feet-first into her Gellond forces Song to release the escape pod. The pod plunges closer to the planet, as does Song's mobile suit.

"Damn Feddie dog! Die, NOW!"

Song's Gellond aims its beam rifle directly at the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam. With a deft maneuver, the Centurion Gundam wrenches the weapon out of the Gellond's hand. With a grace seemingly impossible for such a massive machine, the Centurion Gundam tosses the Gellond's weapon back over its shoulder, where it is caught by the metalshod hands of a Moscow Team mobile suit.

Under Jolie's direction, the Centurion Gundam pummels Hyo-Kyung Song's Gellond with a series of powerful blows from its Gundarium fists. The Gellond's monoeye unit is shattered. The mighty punches snap critical gears and servomotors aboard the Gellond, further immobilizing it.

Certain now that her enemy is vanquished, Jolie grabs the wreck of the Gellond in one of the Centurion Gundam's mighty hands. Servomotors straining, the Centurion Gundam throws the Gellond deeper into the grasp of humanity's mother planet.

Already critically damaged, the Gellond begins to burn more intensely as its titanium hull scrapes against the ever thickening Terran atmosphere.

Its combat processing computer seriously damaged, the Gellond can no longer report its systems status to its pilot. Hyo-Kyung Song does not need the computer to tell her, however, that her Gellond's Vollute system has been severely damaged and will not deploy.

It will be a long, agonizing death unless her enemy possesses the decency to make it otherwise.

The disembodied voice of Dirk Kirscher seems to speak to Hyo-Kyung gently from somewhere deep in the center of her mind, "We really don't deserve much decency, Luv. Not after all we've done, but the universe is kinder than we'd be."

Another voice, Mugabe Gazi's, adds, "A warrior's end is not a destiny to flee from. It's one to be embraced, Hyo-Kyung."

Dirk's voice sounds as if it smiles, "This isn't the retirement I had in mind, but maybe it'll be even better. You with us, Luv?"

Hyo-Kyung smiles weakly and answers through her own voice, "Shortly, my friends. Very shortly."

An unbearable heat begins to envelop the Gellond.

Jolie extracts the Centurion Gundam's beam rifle and levels it at Hyo-Kyung Song's slowly disintegrating Gellond. Her enemy is beaten, but true to Hyo-Kyung's hopes, Jolie is a soldier with a deep sense of decency. Knowing how slow, painful, and terrifying it would be to die burning through atmospheric re-entry, Jolie shows Hyo-Kyung Song the one act of mercy she can.

The Centurion Gundam opens fire with its beam rifle.

The Gellond of Blackbird Three, Hyo-Kyung Song, is vaporized immediately, along with its pilot.

The Blackbirds are reunited in the eternal tranquility of death.

The Centurion Gundam's combat computer reports, "Atmospheric contact in thirty seconds. Vollute System deploying."

Over half of the twenty-five escort MS from the Special Forces were lost to the Blackbirds' attack. Of these, four pilots were able to bail out of their mobile suits alive, and now await rescue. The remaining pilots were killed in action, including the commanding officers of the Moscow and Xerxes Teams.

Nine young lives, twelve including the Blackbirds, snuffed out in an instant. Thousands of manhours of training and preparation, lost with a gesture. Grieving parents, siblings, lovers, and friends on Earth and in space, their sorrows to be borne for the remainder of their days.

All so the bureaucrats who rule the Earth Federation Government could deliberate ineffectually about the "Spacenoid Problem" that has bedeviled them for decades.

Two _Magellan_-class warships from the Earth Federation Forces Whampoa Base in Shanghai approach the descending Federal Forces convoy from Garrison Noah. Two squads of GM-IV mobile suits stream forth from the _Magellan_-class cruisers _Ghostwind_ and _Taggert_.

Typically, they have arrived too late to be of any help. Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of the Special Forces, it makes no difference…not this time, anyway.

A message is received by the shuttle _Nightwing_, the escape pod of the destroyed shuttle _Silverthread_, and the remaining mobile suits of the Special Forces, "This is Captain Leonard Stern of Whampoa Escort Squad. Sorry we were late, General Noah, General Blackhead. Severe weather at Whampoa Base prevented us from lifting off in time. The extreme cold was preventing us from igniting our main boosters."

However legitimate that excuse might or might not be, Generals Noah and Blackhead are in no mood to hear it. Recriminations, however, could wait for later. For the moment, the only priority is landing the convoy safely at Whampoa Base.

General Noah transmits a message back to the _Ghostwind_, "Captain Stern. We'll be docking with the _Ghostwind_. Please send an escort."

"Roger that, General Noah," comes Stern's reply, then his order, "Escort Squadron Units T-16 and T-18: retrieve the escape pod of the _Silverthread_ and bring it safely aboard the _Ghostwind_ immediately. All remaining units guard our flank as we re-enter the atmosphere."

In response, two GM-IVs from the escort squad attach magnetic clamp cables to the descending escape pod, stabilizing its azimuth and halting its freefall. The two Federation mobile suits then proceed to draw the pod into the hangar bay of the _Ghostwind_.

The remaining GM-IVs, twenty-five in number, form a metaphorical titanium curtain behind the descending convoy, guarding against possible further attacks by enemy forces.

The escape pods secured aboard the _Ghostwind_, Captain Stern issues a new order, "Escort Squad prepare for re-entry. ETA at Whampoa Base in T-minus fifteen minutes and counting."

Elsewhere, the surviving mobile suits of the Special Forces are re-entering Earth's atmosphere via their deployed Vollute systems. The only mobile suit not deploying a Vollute is Captain Athena Ibaz's Cour De Leon, whose aerodynamic Waverider configuration obviates the need for re-entry by Vollute.

"This …freakin'….hurts…!" Jolie's voice grunts through the comlink.

Athena, calm and cool as always, says gently, "Relax. Let yourself go limp. Don't try to fight the gees. You'll only make it worse."

Following her best friend and superior officer's advice, which has never gotten her into trouble before, Jolie forces herself to stop straining against the gravitational forces around her. Her muscles relax. Her mind goes limp. She feels herself floating despite the increase of gravity.

The stars begin to dim. Soon, Jolie notices vapor clouds around her Centurion Gundam. There is also sound…the friction of metal against air, so clamorous compared to the silence of space. As gravity increasingly exerts its force upon her, Jolie's tiny body begins to feel impossibly heavy. It is as if an invisible hand had placed a boulder on top of her.

All around the Centurion Gundam, various spacecraft and mobile suits of the Earth Federation Forces make similar descents into the atmosphere of Mother Earth. The planet embraces them, but not gently. Passengers and pilots alike brace themselves as retro-thrusters engage and combine with the swollen Vollutes to further brake the war machines' descent into the atmosphere.

Aboard the Cour De Leon, the mobile suit's combat computer intones "Altitude 35,000 meters…30,000….25,000."

Athena opens communications channels to all Special Forces mobile suit pilots, "This is Centurion Leader to all Special Forces Units. After we've touched down, remember to wait for disembarkation gantries to deploy before de-manning mobile suits."

Although that consideration would seem, on first impression. to be mere common sense it's this kind of attention to detail and presence of mind that make Athena one of the Federal Forces' finest officers. The pilots of the Special Forces are mostly Spacenoids. These young men and women were born and raised in space, and are accustomed to low-gravity or zero-gravity environments. Many of them have never visited Earth before. Failure to bear that in mind has caused no shortage of mishaps to first-time visitors to Earth.

_Moreover_, Athena thinks to herself with an amused smile, _if I let the greatest piloting prodigy of our generation fall to her death getting out of her mobile suit, I'd be the most ludicrous war criminal ever!_

Athena notes that she no longer hears Jolie grunting, complaining, or cursing through the tac net. Either Jolie has successfully found a way to cope with the G-forces of re-entry, or she's passed out. Athena considers the latter possibility more likely.

Either way, she would know soon. Touchdown ETA is now fewer than five minutes away.

Several dozen glittering objects descend into the clear, cold sky over Shanghai, China, like a shower of falling meteors.

At a sidewalk café located on the famous Bund in Shanghai, a young man looks up into the dark, starry skies high above the city. He sees the telltale contrails of the incoming Federal Forces convoy streaking by, en rout to landing at Whampoa Base some forty kilometers outside of the city limits.

_Looks like he's managed to survive, at least for now,_ Hathaway Noah muses.

His father. His enemy. His prey.


	7. Chapter 7: WARMTH BEFORE WINTER

EPISODE 7: WARMTH BEFORE WINTER

The Special Forces mobile suits still capable of walking (which is most of them) march into a hangar that has been hastily cleared of surplus materials to accommodate them. The old storage facility has not been used for years, except to store scrap metal and spare parts, but facility management crews utilizing worker mobile suits are making space for the one dozen plus mobile suits of the Special Forces units, now confined Earthside until transports can be arranged to return them to their base at Garrison Noah in Side 7. Captain Athena Ibaz has heard from a Whampoa Base official that it will be at least a few days before that can be arranged…perhaps as long as a week or longer.

Such is the inefficiency of the Earth Federation Forces in general in these times.

Ninety minutes pass before portable lift gantry crews arrive to enable the Special Forces mobile suit pilots to de-man their mecha. It is already 02:37. The Centurion Team has been awake and on duty for over twenty-two hours. As elite troops, they are trained to function effectively for up to seventy-two hours without sleep, if necessary, but that does not mean that the long hours are not grueling…especially after that life-or-death battle and atmospheric re-entry they have just endured.

Only five lift vehicles are available to service twelve mobile suits. On the average, it takes five minutes for each vehicle to disembark a mobile suit pilot from his or her mecha. Athena instructs the other pilots to disembark first and proceed to post-mission processing. She and Jolie will be last.

It is 03:21 by the time that Athena disembarks from the Cour de Leon. The air in the hangar is cold. It is early November, but winter has arrived early in Shanghai this year. Athena had the Cour de Leon's communications receiver tuned into local radio while waiting for the lift vehicle, and heard that snow was expected in the coming days.

_Great time for us to get stranded down here,_ Athena reflects wryly.

This is not Athena's first visit to Earth. She first came to the mother planet as a young child of nine. She remembers riding in a stately limousine escorted by over a dozen security vehicles on a wide boulevard in Dakar, Senegal…then the Earth Federation Government's capital city on the planet. A gathering of hundreds of thousands of people lined the streets of Dakar that day to greet her arrival on Earth as the Sovereign of the Neo Zeon Empire. There were no protesters on the street that day. Lady Haman Karn's security forces had seen to that.

At that age, Athena had been too young, too naïve, and too far in the thrall of her caretaker, Lady Haman, to fully appreciate what was being done to her. As Duchess Minerva, Athena had been the cute, smiling puppet of an evil woman and her militaristic cohorts. Athena had been used to bring an innocent, adorable face to the evil of the Zabi Family…to lead the people of Earth to believe that they were dealing with a kinder, more humane Archduchy of Zeon than they had during the One Year War. Duchess Minerva Zabi was used as a mask for Lady Haman Khan's imperial ambitions.

Athena shudders, zipping up the parka she had taken along in anticipation of a forced landing in Shanghai. Athena is uncertain if the chill she feels comes from the environment around her, or from her memories of those dark days.

Athena had also spent some time on Earth after she came into the care Colonel Char Aznable. For about two year's time, she lived with Colonel Char at the home of his adoptive family, the Masses, in Switzerland. Mr. and Mrs. Mass were very kindhearted people, and they treated Athena as if she were their own grandchild…not caring that she was the descendent of militaristic zealots whose ambitions had slain billions. Of this period on Earth, Athena has warmer, more pleasant memories: the green grass and multihued flowers that graced the slopes of the lower Alps in spring and summertime, and the beautiful crystal clear nights over a carpet of milk-white snow during the winters. It was perhaps the happiest period of Athena's childhood.

Since then, there have been one or two training missions on Earth during her years at the Earth Federation Forces Officer's Academy. Athena remembered that in one training mission during her first year at the academy, she was part of a unit that conducted a simulation re-entry combat exercise not unlike the battle that she and her Centurion Team members had participated in a few short hours ago. They had landed near the Federal Forces' California Hickory Base during that particular mission, and in the following days' R&R time, Athena even had the opportunity to visit the ancient Earth cities of San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Athena comes out of these reflections as she spots Jolie, who is standing at the foot of the Centurion Gundam, neck craned forward and hand leaning against the mecha for support. Jolie is panting and looks a little pale.

"Are you all right?" Athena asks with concern.

Jolie waves Athena off, bends over, and vomits onto the cold concrete ground of the hangar. The half-digested milky remains of the previous evening's dinner at the officer's commissary are unrecognizable.

Athena places a comforting and supportive arm around Jolie's waist as the teenager continues retching up the contents of her stomach.

"I'm OK," Jolie says after a minute, wiping her mouth with the back of her gloved hand, "Ugh…one of these days, I'll be able to get out of one of these cockpits without needing medical attention."

Athena pulls out her handkerchief and helps Jolie wipe the remaining residue from the corner of the pretty teenager's mouth. As if on cue, a pair of Medical Corps staffers stops by with an ambulance vehicle.

One of the medics approaches the pair and salutes them, "Captain, Lieutenant. Ma'am, do either of you need medical assistance? Can we give you transportation to the medical complex?"

Athena checks with Jolie again, "Sure you're OK?"

Jolie nods, "I'm fine."

Athena tells the medical staffer, "We're all right, but we'll take you up on that ride to the medical complex. Is the rest of my crew there?"

"Yes, ma'am," the medical staffer reports, "all Special Forces personnel are now at the medical complex undergoing checks or receiving treatment for wounds sustained during the battle."

"Very well, Sergeant," Athena says, "let's get over there, then…"

"Ma'am," the medical sergeant salutes.

Athena and Jolie board the ambulance and are taken to the medical complex.

At the same time, General Bright Noah and General Manron Blackhead are being whisked via executive limousine to an emergency conference with the Earth Federation Government Deliberative Council. The two generals were originally not to have met with the high officials of the civilian government until the following day, but the attack on the generals as they traveled to Earth from Side 7 has necessitated a change of plans. Earth Federation Government officials are roused from their sleep by aides, and quickly shower and dress to attend the emergency conference.

The ISRLA has become increasingly brazen in its attacks. Despite Dr. Sayla Mass's claims of wishing for peaceful coexistence with the Earth Federation Government, the ISRLA appears to becoming more, not less aggressive in its stance towards the Federation. Many in the Earth Federation Forces and the civilian government believe that the ISRLA must secretly be receiving Zeon support from the Outer Solar System.

The ISR's propaganda wing is also becoming increasingly potent. Some eighteen months ago, the ISR had begun disseminating its message through a media apparatus dubbed the _Cislunar Free Media_ Bankrolled by such financiers as Anaheim Enterprises (the world's largest technological corporation, manufacturing mobile suits and space battleships among other items), the Luo Company (a trading house that supported the AEUG and Karaba during the Gryps Conflict), the government of Side 6, the Zeon warlords of the Outer Solar System, and other business and political entities not on the friendliest terms with the Earth Federation Government, the CFM initially built up a great underground following, and is now increasingly making its presence felt in the mainstream media. The Earth Federation Government regards the CFM as a dangerous subversive entity, but is wary of taking overt steps to shut it down out of a legitimate fear that doing so would further galvanize public opinion in the space colonies against the Federation.

Although increasingly influential, the CFM operates with a relatively small, mobile staff, making it difficult for the Earth Federation Government to track its activities. Although it maintains a head office in Zum City on Side 3, the CFM's staff of several dozen investigative reporters, photojournalists, writers, and editors is widely dispersed across the Earth Sphere and are constantly on the move. The stock and trade of the CFM are investigative reports that reveal the corruption, inefficacy, and often outright cruelty of the Earth Federation Government towards the space-based population. These have caused a great deal of embarrassment for the Federation, and stoke the flames of anti-Federation sentiment in the space colonies. In response, the Federation has quietly arrested and imprisoned several CFM staffers, but stopped this practice after the CFM took advantage of the Federation's move to further depict the Federation as suppressors of Spacenoid rights. All in all, the CFM is a considerable thorn in the side of the Earth Federation Government, especially the Earth Federation Forces, which the CFM typically portrays alternately as an army of incompetents or murderous thugs.

The CFM is nominally headed by Kai Shiden, the ISR's Chief of Intelligence and Information. Its day-to-day operations, however, are actually managed by a woman named Linda Ackerman, whose acerbic anti-Federation op-ed writings have enjoyed great popularity with the Spacenoid population. Hardly a week passes by without a new investigative report or opinion piece from the ISR outlining the Federation's many crimes against space colonists.

One of the brightest lights on the CFM staff is a reporter/writer going by the pen name of "Mafty." Nobody outside of the CFM's inner circle knows who Mafty really is, but many surmise that he or she must have once been a Federation or Zeon intelligence agent. Mafty has demonstrated an uncanny ability to discover and expose many of the Earth Federation Government and the Earth Federation Forces' deepest, darkest secrets. In recent months, Mafty has exposed a secret plan by the Earth Federation Forces to construct a base in neutral and independent Side 6…a plan that has now been cancelled due to the great public outrage. A year ago, several high-ranking Earth Federation Government officials were forced to resign from office after Mafty exposed them as having accepted Zeon bribes for illicit supply and weapons trades. Most recently, Mafty has broadcast a profile piece on one of the Earth Federation Forces' most famous and beloved figures, General Bright Noah. To the people of Earth and colonies loyal to the Federation, Bright Noah is a hero…a man who has bravely and skillfully led many battles against the Zeon and Titans during the past twenty years. Mafty's interpretation of the war hero, however, casts him in a much more negative light…showing Bright Noah as a heartless leader unconcerned with the lives of the people under his command, an ineffectual bureaucrat betraying his own Spacenoid heritage to be the running dog of his Earth Federation Government masters, and a sorry excuse for a family man who has abandoned his wife and children in the name of adventure and glory.

Mafty's view of General Bright Noah is undoubtedly biased against the general, but if the general public were aware of Mafty's true identity, it would likely give great credence to what Mafty has to say about Bright Noah – because Mafty is none other than Hathaway Noah, Bright Noah's firstborn son.

Scarcely six hours after touching down on Earth, the Centurion Team is lined up in their new, temporary home in a military dormitory at Whampoa Base, receiving new orders from Captain Athena Ibaz.

"The conference is expected to last ten days," Athena informs her unit, "during this time, security forces from Whampoa Base will be providing primary security for Generals Noah and Blackhead. The Special Forces will provide secondary security."

This news is received by the team with quiet enthusiasm. These orders mean that the team will have the opportunity for some downtime. Unless there is a major mobile suit assault on Shanghai (unlikely, considering the Federation's concentration of strength at Whampoa Base), the team is unlikely to see deployment. The team is looking forward to some R&R time on the mother planet, which most of them had not visited before now.

They should have known better.

"We'll be spending the unexpected downtime training for Earthside operations and reevaluating our battle tactics," Athena announces, "I'm expecting each of you to spend the day working with the engineers and technicians in the repair and upgrade of your mobile suits, which will receive modifications for Earthside combat."

The team groans inwardly, but replies with a sharp "Yes, ma'am," knowing that Athena would tolerate no protests.

Athena is a demanding commander, but she is by no means heartless or insensitive to the needs of the people under her command. To conclude the issuing of new orders, Athena adds with a grin, "Upon the completion of your duties at 17:00, you have a pass for R&R time, which you may spend here on the base or in Shanghai, provided you return to base by 22:00."

At that point, a young liaison officer of Whampoa Base approaches and salutes Athena, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am. General Noah and General Blackhead request your presence at the security conference."

That comes as a surprise. A mere Special Forces captain is unlikely to be asked to attend such a high-level security conference. Athena reasons that it is probably a consequence of the ISRLA assault on the re-entry convoy.

"Very well," Athena tells the liaison officer. Turning to Jolie, Athena says, "2Lt. Minh, you are in command."

"Who, me?" Jolie says, rudely awakened from some adolescent daydream.

Athena fixes a stern glare at Jolie, then tells her, "Yes, Lieutenant. You're in charge of the squad until I return from the conference. Make sure my orders are carried out, understand?"

Jolie salutes, "Yes, ma'am."

Athena returns the salute and departs with the liaison officer to where Generals Noah and Blackhead await them.

_Boy, oh boy, oh boy, oh boy_ Jolie thinks to herself, _this is the first time I've actually been in command…on my own. What if I screw up? What should I do?"_

Jolie turns to see the Centurion Team looking expectantly towards her.

_I can do this,_ Jolie tells herself, _I used to be a girl's softball team captain in Fourth Grade!_

"What the hell are all of you looking at?" Jolie says to the squad with her best imitation of Athena's stern scowl, "You heard the woman: go and help the techs with your mobile suits!"

"Yes, ma'am!" the Centurions salute, departing to follow the orders given by Athena and executed by Jolie.

Jolie watches the team disperse on her orders. She smiles, _Hah! Being in command is cool!_

At the Noah home in the suburbs of Shanghai, Chieming Noah is checking messages on her personal Datapad. Her father had sent a message saying that he would be home to join Chieming and her mother, Mirai, some time tomorrow.

Chieming sighs. She has seen precious little of her father during her sixteen years. Chieming's father is a hero to billions of people whose lives and freedom he has fought gallantly to protect, but to Chieming, he has been an absentee parent who has spent more time with comrades-at-arms than with his family.

Chieming adores both her parents, and although her father has seldom been with her during the past eleven years, she respects the work he does to keep her and the rest of the people on Earth and in the space colonies safe from terrorists such as the Zeon, Titans, or ISRLA. She also, however, harbors some anger towards her father…anger for having cast her beloved brother, Hathaway, out of the family's life. Anger at his stubbornness and unwillingness to forgive a mistake that his son made in a moment of passion.

It was in U.C. 0093, during the Second Neo Zeon War, when Hathaway, enraged at seeing Quess Parayana, a fractious Newtype girl of sixteen with whom he had become infatuated, slain by the Federal Forces' engineer 2Lt. Chan Agi, then the lover of famed Federal Forces Newtype and mobile suit pilot Amuro Ray, killed Chan in a moment of anger. Hathaway was charged with the murder of a Federal Forces officer…a crime that, committed in a time of war, made him eligible for the death penalty. Bright was able to use his status and influence in the Earth Federation Forces to spare his son's life, but wanted nothing more to do with the boy. Bright threw Hathaway out of the family, forcing him to leave and telling him never to return.

Chieming remembers the day, some five years ago, when her brother was expelled from the family.

The hand of Bright Noah had stricken many an insubordinate soldier during the many wars he had fought in. Amuro Ray, Camille Vidan, Judau Ashta, Kai Shiden, Katsu Kobayashi – all of them had tasted the back of Bright's hand or the knuckles of his fist in moments of insubordination.

None of those blows, however, were stricken with as much anger as Colonel Bright Noah now unleashes upon the young face of his firstborn, thirteen year old Hathaway Noah.

"You killed a good woman and a fine officer!" Bright roars, "I don't know how you can live with yourself after what you've done! Lt. Agi was your friend too! She protected you and took care of you while carrying out her duties, and you repay her by killing her!"

Hathaway matches his father's wrath with his own, "You! Don't try to lay the blame on me! You were the one who killed Chan, and Amuro, and Quess! Char Aznable was right about you and about the Federation! All of you are murderers! You're willing to kill so that you can continue to rule over the world's people!"

Bright responds to Hathaway's accusations with another slap, "Preposterous nonsense! Count yourself lucky that Captain Amuro didn't return from the last mission! If he had known what you did to Lt. Agi!"

"Captain Amuro," Hathaway sneers, "I can't believe that I used to think of that guy as some great hero. He was just as bad as you and the rest of them! I'm glad he died!"

"You…!" Bright bares his teeth at his son, cocking his fist for a blow sure to knock out some teeth.

Mirai Noah, who has been fretfully watching on the sidelines, tearfully stops her husband from striking the devastating blow, "Bright, don't! Please! He's your son!"

Chieming Noah, then a slight girl of twelve years, begs her father, "Daddy, please! Don't hit big brother anymore! He'll be good!"

"He's no son of mine," Bright says angrily, but relaxes his fist.

Hathaway Noah spits at the man he no longer respects as his father.

Bright considers slapping the boy again, but thinks better of it. Instead, the veteran Federal Forces officer says quietly, "Pack your things. I want you out of my house in thirty minutes, do you understand? Get out of this house and don't ever come back again. From today onward, you are no one to us. If I see you here after thirty minutes, I swear I'll shoot you personally."

"Fine," Hathaway says, rising from the chair in which he had been sitting. Pointing at Bright, Hathaway says menacingly, "But remember this, old man: I'll make you pay one day. I swear, I'll make you pay."

To emphasize his point, Hathaway picks up a ceramic vase from a nearby shelf and hurls it at Bright. Bright dodges the missile, and begins charging at his son, who disappears into his bedroom to pack his possessions.

Mirai stops him, "Bright, please!"

Bright comforts his wife, "I'm sorry, Mirai. Hathaway has committed a crime that I can't forgive. I can't tolerate him in this family anymore."

Chieming runs into her older brother's bedroom, where the young man tearfully packs some clothing and a few other items into a small valise.

"Big Brother," Chieming sobs, "where are you gonna go?"

"I don't know sis," Hathaway says, brushing way tears as he packs his luggage, "the universe is a big place. I'll find my way."

"Will I ever see you again?" the girl asks.

"Maybe not," the boy replies.

Chieming hugs her older brother, "Hathaway, please don't go! I don't want you to leave! Mommy doesn't want you to leave either!"

"Sis, I've got no choice," Hathaway says, "that bastard you call 'father' will kill me if I stay. I don't need him any more than he needs me."

Chieming, knowing that she cannot stop her brother from leaving, must nonetheless know one thing from him, "Big Brother, what you said about making Daddy pay. You don't really mean that, do you?"

Hathaway Noah does not reply to his sister's question. He closes his valise and heads out the door.

Hathaway sees his parents whispering quietly to each other as he enters the living room of his childhood home for the last time. They turn to him.

Hathaway points an accusing finger at his father, "Remember this, Bright Noah: the next time you see me, I'll be the last person you ever see. I swear it."

Hathaway leaves the house, his younger sister and mother chasing him in vain.

Bright Noah sinks to his knees and sobs. 

It was the saddest day in Chieming Noah's life. Since then, Hathaway Noah has returned to Shanghai to visit her and her mother once or twice…always under highly secret circumstances and without the knowledge of her father. These visits, however, are rare and usually quite brief. She has not heard from him in over eighteen months.

Until now.

Chieming Noah receives a message on her Datapad from "Dean James," one of her brother's many aliases: "Sis: I'm in town. Let's have dinner together. Eternal Spring Bistro on Joffre Street, 7:00 p.m. tonight."

Chieming smiles. She always looks forward to get-togethers with her brother. They grew up together, after all, and were very close during their childhood years.

General Bright Noah, General Manron Blackhead, and Captain Athena Ibaz appear before the Earth Federation Government Security Council at a secret underground chamber located in the city of Shanghai. This council chamber is accessible only via a concealed underground transport from the Federal Assembly Building downtown. The bunker is secure from penetration by mobile suits, poison gas, and even a nuclear strike.

"The ISRLA continues to outmaneuver us," General Noah tells the council, "it's uncanny how easily they can penetrate our security."

Senator Bryce Coleman, one of the senators, glares at the general severely, "It certainly doesn't speak well of the competence of the people under your command that this can happen, General Noah. Do you have anything more substantial to offer, or can you only tell us what we obviously already know?"

The general is left chagrined by this rebuke, but Athena rises to his rescue.

"Senator, if I may," Athena chimes in as the general sits down.

"You are?" the senator asks.

Athena replies, "Captain Athena Ibaz, commanding officer, Centurion Special Operations Team."

"Ah, yes," says Senator Junichi Hashimoto, "you're the officer who commanded the operation that rescued the _Moonshadow_, and also guided the safe landing of General Noah and General Blackhead's convoy."

"Go ahead," Senator Coleman says.

Athena begins, "Members of the Council, I'm sure you all know of Mafty."

The senators mumble among themselves. Of course, they have all heard of Mafty. Mafty has been the source of no shortage of embarrassment for them during the past two years.

Athena continues, "Ladies and gentlemen, you have all undoubtedly read, seen, or heard examples of Mafty's anti-Federation propaganda. They are sensational, and they manage to expose secrets that should be known by no one outside of these chambers. Have you ever considered how Mafty has been able to obtain all this secret information?"

Another senator, Carla Delgado, asks, "Captain Ibaz, are you saying that Mafty is not only a troublemaker in the media, but also the source of our military leaks?"

"Ma'am," Athena replies, "it would be extremely coincidental if he weren't. Have you ever noticed how quickly and in how much detail Mafty's investigative reports appear after a Federal security weakness has been compromised? I was able to read his spin on the assault on the shuttle convoy while waiting to de-man my mobile suit early this morning."

The senators nod in agreement. They find Athena's observations quite compelling.

Sitting beside Athena, Generals Noah and Blackhead cannot help but smile. Athena has bailed them out of a tight spot again…this time, politically.

Senator Coleman says, "Captain Ibaz, we'd like to hear more about your observations on Mafty and how we should deal with his nuisance…"

Athena returns to Whampoa Base at 16:30. She finds Jolie and the rest of the Centurion Team industriously assisting the base technicians in the repair and upgrade of their mobile suits, just as she had ordered.

Spotting Athena, Jolie runs over to her friend and commanding officer.

"Hey, 'Thena! We've been working on the MS just like you ordered us to!"

Athena, a bit too tired from her long day in front of the Security Council to chew Jolie out for forgetting protocol and etiquette again, replies simply, "Good work. I'm glad to see that you can handle being in charge."

"Hey," Jolie says with a grin, "we're off in thirty minutes. Wanna go into town for dinner and to see the sights?"

"I just got back from the city," Athena replies, "it's a forty-minute drive one way."

"Oh, c'mon," Jolie insists, "it's not every day that we get time off…on Earth no less."

Athena grins. For all her superlative abilities, Jolie is very much a teenager after all, "All right. There's this restaurant in downtown that serves the best Beijing Duck I've ever had. Why don't we dine there?"

Jolie says, "Cool! I love Chinese food! My ancestors were Chinese, after all. Is the rest of the squad coming, or is it just you and me?"

"Go ask them," Athena replies, "and tell them to get ready in thirty minutes."

The Eternal Spring Bistro on Joffre Road is one of the most popular upscale dining facilities in Shanghai. Open in some form on the road since the early 20th Century, the bistro is known for its delectable menu, which is half-Chinese, and half-French. As has been the case for generations, getting a table at the bistro at peak dining hours is next to impossible, and the restaurant does not take reservations.

Chieming Noah, wearing a conservative, but attractive skirt beneath her leather overcoat, stands waiting in the restaurant's crowded lobby. She is soon approached by a young man in a finely cut Armani suit that he wears without a tie.

"Big Brother," Cheiming grins brightly.

"Sis," Hathaway Noah replies affectionately, removing his dark sunglasses.

The siblings embrace, happy to see each other after so many months.

Chieming Noah checks out her brother's hair, dyed a light brown over its native black color, "I almost didn't recognize you with that new hair color. It makes you look so much like Uncle Amuro."

Hathaway releases his embrace of his sister at the mention of the name of the Earth Federation Forces' greatest hero of the One Year War.

"I'm sorry," Chieming says, "I know you don't like to talk about…"

"Never mind that," Hathaway replies, a smile returning to his face, "How have you and Mom been?"

"We've been fine," Chieming says, "we were worried about…Daddy."

Hathaway nods, "He just can't stay out of trouble, can he?"

"Hathaway…" Chieming begins.

"Never mind," Hathaway says, "I wanted to see Mom too, but now isn't a good time for that. Tell her I'm sorry, and that I'll see her next time."

Chieming says, "So what have you been up to lately? Still working on your writing?"

"Yeah," Hathaway says to his sister, "lots of work. Gets my bills paid, though."

"Just who is it you write for, and what do you write about?" Chieming asks.

"Nothing you'd be interested in," Hathaway replies, "boring political crap, that's all."

Chieming clearly understands that her brother is only willing to be so candid to her. She will get that much, but no more.

At that moment, two slim, attractive feminine figures in Earth Federation Forces military uniforms are jostled into the crowded space of the bistro's lobby. The two young women stand within arm's reach of the Noah siblings.

The shorter, black-haired one, wide-eyed and smooth complexioned, says, "Jesus, what a crowd!"

"I know," the taller, honey-blonde one replies, "it's always like this here. We'll probably need to wait at least ninety minutes."

The black-haired one, evidently Asian in ethnicity, says, "The rest of the squad was smart to not come with us."

The honey-blonde replies, "I'm sure they wouldn't have minded the wait too much, but they probably figure there are better ways to spend their R&R time than to hang out with their superior officers."

"Heh," the black-haired one says again, "they were probably worried that you'd order them to do urban patrol or something."

Chieming views the pair admiringly. The two officers look so sharp, so sexy in their uniforms. The taller one, whom Chieming identifies as a captain by her rank insignia, has an aristocratic air about her. She is beautiful in the way a fairy tale princess would be, and her eyes reflect a piercing intelligence. The shorter one, a lieutenant, is around Chieming's own age. This one, too, is extraordinarily pretty, although more in the manner of a vivacious teenager than her more mature commanding officer.

Someday soon, Chieming knows, she would be like them. Her application to the Academy has been accepted, and her training would begin the following spring. Chieming's dream is to follow in the footsteps of her heroic parents as an officer of the Earth Federation Forces.

"Maybe we should just to go that steakhouse we passed by on the way, 'Thena," Jolie says, "that place smelled pretty good."

"Have some patience, Jolie," Athena replies, "the cuisine here is well worth the wait. I've been here before."

Chieming turns to her brother and begins to say something, but notices that Hathaway is staring intently at the pretty, honey-blonde officer named "Athena."

Athena notices too, returning Hathaway Noah's intent stare with a guarded glare of her own.

Hathaway offers a charming smile. Athena does not return it, instead turning to Jolie, "Maybe you're right. To the steakhouse, then?"

At that point, the restaurant's manager spots the two groups and his face lights up in recognition.

"Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise," restaurant manager Jack Fung says, "Athena! Is that you? Look at you! All grown up!"

Jack takes Athena's hand and kisses it cordially, to which Athena offers a smile, "It's been a long time, Jack. It's good seeing you again."

"Ah, Athena," Jack says fondly, "when you last came here with Mr. and Mrs. Mass back in 0094, you'd just applied to the Academy…and I was just the head waiter here. Look at you now: a captain, and more beautiful than ever!"

"You've been promoted too," Athena observes, "manager, eh?"

Jack says with a laugh, "What can I say? I know how to schmooze the boss."

"That makes two of us," Athena says pleasantly.

Jack then turns to Hathaway Noah, who has not taken his eyes off Athena, "Mr. James. It's good seeing you again. Been a while."

Hathaway, momentarily snapping out of his reverie, replies, "Good to see you again, Jack. Got a table?"

Jack takes a dubious look over his shoulder, "I've got one left, but it will seat four. You aren't together with Athena, are you?"

"No," Hathaway replies, _But I certainly hope that changes,_ he leaves unspoken.

"If you don't mind sharing a table…" Jack begins.

Jolie, whose intestines are twisted in knots with hunger, answers, "We don't mind!"

Chieming and Hathaway nod their assent, as does Athena. Jack Fung leads them to a round table in a cozy corner of the restaurant.

The four seat themselves at the round table, Hathaway, Chieming, Jolie, and Athena, in that order.

There is an awkward silence for a brief moment. Hathaway continues staring at Athena. Athena pretends not to notice, praying for the waiter to hurry with the menu so she can hide behind it.

Chieming too, is studying the two officers carefully, although not with her brother's singlemindedness. There is something familiar about these two…especially their names. Then it dawns on her.

"Wait a minute," Chieming says, "Excuse me. But aren't you Captain Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh of the Centurion Team?"

"You know us?" Jolie pipes up.

"Well, of course I know about you," Chieming says with a smile, "Everybody does! You're the White Phoenix!"

Jolie is amazed, "I had no idea that I've become famous."

"Are you kidding?" Chieming says excitedly, "All the other kids in school talk about you all the time! A lot of girls have started growing their hair long like yours…including, um, me."

Jolie notices for the first time that Chieming Noah wears her hair in a style similar to her own.

Jolie begins to giggle, "Cool! I've started a fad!"

Athena is amused as well, "Don't let it get to your head, Jolie," she puns.

Chieming realizes that introductions are in order, "I'm Chieming Noah. This is my older brother, Hathaway."

"Chieming…Noah?" Jolie asks, "You mean you're General Noah's…?"

"He's our father," Chieming replies with a hint of pride.

A dark look comes over Hathaway Noah's face, but he says nothing. His expression becomes more pleasant again as his eyes once again dance over Athena.

Jack Fung returns with a waiter, who begins to distribute the menus.

"Can we start everyone off with some wine tonight?" Jack asks cordially.

"Chablis," Athena says, "slightly chilled."

"Four glasses," Hathaway Noah adds, "plus the bottle."

"Excellent," Jack says, sending the waiter for the wine.

"It must be exciting piloting mobile suits for the Federation, huh?" Chieming asks Jolie.

"Yeah, it's a whole bag of laughs," Jolie says, "What could be more fun than getting slagged by beam fire or being burnt to a crisp during atmospheric re-entry for two-thousand credits a month?"

Chieming finds herself liking Jolie's sarcastic sense of humor. Chieming is a very conservative girl, raised with very conservative values. Her parents expect her to be a proper young lady, nothing less. How she wishes she could speak her mind as boldly and brashly as Jolie does.

"What about you?" Jolie asks, seeking out common ground with this girl who shares her hairstyle and her age, "You must still be in high school, huh?"

"Going to graduate after Winter Finals," Chieming says, "then I'm going to the Academy."

"Academy, eh?" Jolie says, "So you're gonna be up there dodging the beams with us, huh?"

"With any luck, yeah," Chieming replies.

As the two teens chat, Athena squirms silently and uncomfortably under Hathaway's intent gaze. The young man is certainly pleasant-looking enough…very handsome, in fact…the good looks of someone who could be the leading man in a romance film. That's partially, however, what makes Athena uncomfortable.

Jolie eyes Hathaway Noah, then whispers to Chieming, "Your brother's cute…really cute, but he's kinda quiet."

Chieming whispers back, "Usually, he's not, but I think he's got a thing for Athena there."

Jolie replies, "Yeah, I noticed too. He's been staring at her ever since we came in here."

Chieming says somewhat crestfallenly, "Doesn't look like Athena's too interested, though,"

"Don't be so sure," Jolie says with a smile, "Athena's good at hiding how she feels. I bet she's just waiting for him to make the first move!"

The two teenaged girls giggle. Athena has a pretty good guess what they're discussing. She resists the urge to roll her eyes.

"Captain Ibaz," Hathaway begins tentatively, but confidently.

"Mr. Noah," Athena replies with a polite, but not overly inviting smile.

Hathaway flashes a charming grin, "Nobody calls me 'Mr.' It's never really suited me. How about 'Hathaway,' instead?"

Athena replies, "All right, Hathaway…but you probably should continue calling me 'Captain Ibaz,' at least until I get promoted to Major or discharged from the Federal Forces."

That reply elicits a short, quiet laugh from Hathaway, "That would be a loss to the Feddies…ooh, excuse me. I'm sorry, that was a rude thing to say."

"Not so much," Athena replies matter-of-factly, "we call ourselves 'Feddies' all the time too."

Jolie knows that much is true. "Feddie," a pejorative term that Zeon soldiers first used in reference to their enemies during the One Year War, has been co-opted by Federal soldiers themselves in joking self-reference. Some consider the term rude, however, when used by civilians to refer to Federation soldiers.

"You'll have to forgive my brother," Chieming says with a mischievous smile, "he doesn't know how to behave himself in public. That's why I have to watch over him all the time."

Athena spares Jolie a glance, and grins, "Same story here."

Jack Fung returns with the wine and wine glasses, pouring for four.

Hathaway lifts his glass to his sister and the two pretty young Federal Forces officers, "To youth, friendship…and peace and freedom!"

"Cheers!"

Ninety minutes later, the group has disposed of a sumptuous and delicious meal, ordered by the combined culinary sensibilities of Hathaway Noah and Athena Ibaz. Between them, they identified the restaurant's finest dishes, including a few that are not featured on the menu.

"That was delicious," Hathaway Noah remarks, running a napkin across his mouth.

"I think I'm gonna explode," Jolie says, having consumed nearly half a Beijing Duck by herself.

"I'm amazed that you can keep that figure of yours eating like that," Chieming teases Jolie, admiring the young lieutenant's long legs and sexy, slim figure.

Jolie says, "I don't get to eat like this all the time. Athena usually gives me ZG-rations for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. What doesn't come out of me from one end usually comes out the other!"

The group laughs at Jolie's somewhat graphic, but amusing joke.

Jack Fung stops by again, "Well, did everyone enjoy the meal?"

"It was excellent, Jack," Athena remarks pleasantly.

"Remarkable, as always," Hathaway adds.

Extracting his credit card, Hathaway tells Jack Fung, "I'm calling tonight's reckoning. What's the damage?"

Jack smiles, "If you want to do damage, Mr. James, you must move faster. Athena has already paid the bill."

Athena grins modestly. Chieming and Jolie are enthusiastic in their thanks for what has been a great meal. Hathaway Noah looks mildly annoyed that he has been denied a gentleman's opportunity to pay for the meal.

Putting his credit card back into his wallet, Hathaway lifts his glass to Athena, "You must be a real hit with the men on the base, paying for their meals and all."

Athena lifts her glass in response, "Actually, most of them think I'm a control-obsessed bitch."

Hathaway did not anticipate that frank remark, but it clearly stimulates him, "Really? Those men must be pretty insecure."

Athena takes a different tack, "Jack just referred to you as 'Mr. James.' There must be an interesting story behind that."

Hathaway says cryptically, "Pen name of mine. I often use it in public."

"My brother's a writer," Chieming Noah explains.

"Interesting," Athena replies noncommittally, "Do you write fiction or nonfiction?"

"Depends on who you ask," Hathaway replies.

The waiter returns with the bill, which Athena signs.

Her teenaged sensibilities knowing a good segue when she sees one, Chieming says to Jolie, "Hey, Jo. There are some really fashionable boutiques up and down Joffre Road. Why don't you and I go check those out? You don't have to return to base so soon, do you?"

Jolie considers it. She loves to shop as much as the next gal, but does she really have that many opportunities to wear civvies? It occurs to Jolie that her entire wardrobe consists of identical Earth Federation Forces uniforms.

Chieming whispers conspiratorially to Jolie, "Let's go. Give these two a chance to be alone together."

Seeing what Chieming is getting at, Jolie giggles.

Jolie tells Athena, "Chieming and I are gonna check out some of the boutiques around here. You wanna come with us?"

Athena, fully aware of what she's being fenced into, has no choice but to admire her protégé's guile, _Damn it, Jolie…you've given me no way out of this, have you?_

"No," Athena replies, "it'd be rude to leave Hathaway here all by himself. You two go. But Jolie: we need to be back at the base by 22:00, so don't stray too far."

"Sure thing, 'Thena!" Jolie replies. Jolie and Chieming quickly depart the restaurant, giggling on their way out.

There is an awkward silence that lingers in the air between Hathaway and Athena, permeating the space in the corner of the restaurant with a mild tension.

Athena breaks the silence as it becomes unbearable, "I don't suppose you want to tell me more about your writing career."

"Only if you promise to not throw me in a prison cell somewhere," Hathaway responds roguishly, "I'm with _Cislunar Free Media_."

"At least you're candid," Athena admits.

"'Candid' is our stock and trade," Hathaway adds.

"Especially for Mafty," Athena offers probingly.

"Mafty…," Hathaway Noah lets out a slight laugh, "now there's a journalist I'd like to meet someday. Probably learn a lot from her."

"What makes you so certain Mafty is a 'her'?" Athena challenges.

Hathaway smiles, "Mafty must be a woman. Only a beautiful woman could charm her way into so many Federation secrets…I'm sure you can relate, Captain Ibaz."

Brushing aside Hathaway's flattery, Athena presses further, "So even the staff of the CFM doesn't know who Mafty really is?"

Hathaway takes a sip of the Chablis before replying, "Not a clue. Every few days, or so it seems, a new Mafty report shows up on our Datapads and we just run with whatever she's got. We've never been able to trace her."

_Nor we,_ Athena thinks to herself, but does not verbalize.

"What about your work, Captain Ibaz?" Hathaway turns the question back on Athena, "It must be exciting work piloting mobile suits. I had an aspiration to that myself when I was younger."

_Listen to him go on as if he's some mature, sophisticated gentleman. I'll bet he's at least a year younger than I am_, Athena thinks.

Athena smiles roguishly, "Why didn't you pursue it?"

"I'm afraid of enclosed spaces," Hathaway says matter-of-factly.

"That must explain why you live on Earth and not in the space colonies," Athena remarks as Hathaway refills her wine glass.

"One of the reasons," Hathaway replies, "but you haven't answered my question, Captain."

"What is there to answer?" Athena replies, "Jolie and I pilot mobile suits to kill people for the Earth Federation Forces. The job pays decently enough, but the real incentive is the thrill."

Hathaway smiles, "You're just determined to remain a mystery, aren't you, Captain Ibaz?"

Athena returns the grin, "Likewise, Mr. 'James.'"

The pair laughs lightly. In each other, Hathaway and Athena see a puzzle to be decoded.

As Hathaway and Athena leave the restaurant, they see that a small crowd of people have gathered around a building across the street: the Shanghai branch of the Earth Federation Government's Office of Space Immigration Affairs. The crowd, which numbers in the hundreds of people, is divided into two sides. On one side are Spacenoid activists, carrying signs bearing such familiar slogans as "End Earthist Oppression!", "Down with the Earth Federation!" and "Hail, Contolism!" On the opposite side are Earth loyalists, bearing their own signs reading "Support the Federation!" and "Remember the Colony Drop Attacks!" People on both sides shout angrily at each other, and are restrained by Earth Federation Forces Military Police as well as members of the local police.

Hathaway steps protectively, although a bit unnecessarily in front of Athena, just in case the anti-Federation crowd decides to turn its hostility upon her (she is, after all, dressed in an Earth Federation Forces uniform, officer's hat on head, overcoat draped on her shoulders).

"Let's walk that way," Hathaway recommends, pointing towards a quieter street along the Bund waterfront. The pair walks along the more tranquil, tree-lined route.

"Such sights are growing increasingly common," Hathaway remarks, "even here on Earth."

"I've seen worse in the colonies," Athena rejoins, "riots have become routine up there."

"You can't really blame them," Hathaway says, "the Federal Forces behave like thugs. Present company excepted, of course."

Athena observes, "You can't really blame the people on Earth either. Over the past twenty years, the Spacenoids have rained one catastrophe after another on them."

Hathaway replies matter-of-factly, "Maybe it could have all have been avoided if the Federation had heeded the warnings of Zeon Daikun."

"Or if the Zabi Family hadn't murdered Daikun and usurped his authority," Athena adds fairly, "but history can't be rewritten, Hathaway. The future depends on what our generation does."

"You're right," Hathaway says, "but I'm not sure what can be done for our generation from the position of a Federal Forces mobile suit pilot."

Athena smiles, "Or from the position of a CFM staff writer. Maybe Mafty will save us from ourselves."

The two laugh at the absurdity of the thought.

"Linda always said she'd trade in the whole lot of us if she could only get Mafty on the staff," Hathaway says.

"Linda Ackerman," Athena recognizes, "the Editor-In-Chief of CFM?"

"That's my boss," Hathaway says, "even more of a slave-driver than you are, however."

Athena remarks, "I've read many of her columns. I enjoy her insights."

"Oh?" Hathaway says, raising an eyebrow, "Isn't that a bit…subversive for a Federal Forces officer to say?"

"I didn't say I agree with her," Athena says, "only that her insights are well taken and well presented."

"Do you write?" Hathaway asks.

"Only military journal entries," Athena replies, "dry and dull."

"Unlike you," Hathaway smiles.

"Very much like me," Athena returns.

"I don't believe that," Hathaway answers.

"There are many things in this world," Athena says, "that are very difficult to believe; that doesn't make them any less true."

"Can't argue with that," Hathaway says.

"Some truths," Athena finishes, "are so terrible that you don't want to believe them."

Hathaway has no response for that. The pair continues their walk in silence.

A few blocks down the street, Jolie and Chieming find themselves along the banks of the Yangtze River. The Chinese metropolis' famed city lights shine gloriously, casting their multicolored glow on the water of the river.

It turns out that the two girls are not really so interested in shopping tonight as they are in chatting. The two, being of the same age, find plenty of common ground despite their different upbringings, which actually hadn't been so different until Jolie's parents and older brother were killed six years earlier. Their present conversation, however, focuses not so much on each other's pasts as on their elder siblings' (biological in the case of Chieming and figurative in the case of Jolie) future.

Chieming is seated demurely on a public bench facing the cold waters of the mighty river. Behind her, Jolie has lain herself out on the front hood of a red sports car parked at the waterfront. Jolie figures that the car's owner probably won't mind.

"Are you serious?" Chieming says in disbelief, "Books?"

"Books," Jolie confirms, drawing a hand across the bangs of her hair to brush them away from her eyes, "a whole shelf full of them, by people like Ma kee o velly and Neet-chee or whoever."

"You make it sound like Athena's a real nerd," Chieming says, "but she's so cool and sexy."

"Well, she is," Jolie admits, rising to sit upright on the hood, tucking her knees to her chin, "cool and sexy…AND a nerd sometimes, but she's just…I don't know, so serious and driven. She's so damn smart that it's scary sometimes. She's definitely got one hell of a brain, but I'm not sure there's a heart in there. I worry she's gonna end up an old maid someday."

"Worry?" Chieming says with a smile, "I thought she's the one taking care of you."

"She does," Jolie says, switching to a more comfortable position flat on her belly, delicate chin resting in delicate hands, "Athena's the only person who's really cared about me since my family died. She's like a big sister to me. That's why I wanna help her."

Chieming looks towards the river and says, "I feel the same way about my big brother, Hathaway. Ever since Daddy kicked him out of the family, Mommy and I have worried ourselves sick over him. He's found a pretty good career for himself, but he's all alone these days."

"He's got you and you guys' mom," Jolie replies, "even though your dad hates him now."

"We don't get to see him much," Chieming says, "Daddy has said he'll shoot Hathaway if he sees him again, and I think he's serious."

"Your dad is my boss's boss's boss," Jolie says, "he doesn't strike me as being that uptight."

"You're not a member of his family," Chieming says somewhat bitterly.

Catching what she has just said, Chieming offers, "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean…"

"Don't worry about it," Jolie replies, "it's not like you're saying anything that isn't true. Besides, I do have family: the Centurions are my family, especially Athena."

After a brief silence, Jolie continues, "Your brother's really cute, you know? It's kind of too bad that Athena is more his type."

That brings a smile from Chieming, "Uh-oh. Are you and your 'big sister' gonna fight over my big brother?"

"Hell, no," Jolie grins, "Hathaway's cute, but he's totally not my type. Don't get me wrong, but he's one of those smooth operator types. I've never trusted guys like that. I'm looking for someone who's really honest and straightforward."

Chieming playfully pretends to be offended, "Oh, but it's OK for him to be interested in _Athena_, huh? With friends like you, does Athena need enemies?"

Jolie replies with a light laugh, "I'm not worried. There's no man on or off of Earth who can get the better of Athena Ibaz. She'll tame that brother of yours for you."

Chieming adds, "Yeah, and ruin her military career in the process; don't forget: she works for my dad. It wouldn't do her reputation with him any good if she and Hathaway were to…"

"Shhh!" Jolie cautions, "They're coming. Pretend we're talking about clothes."

As if on cue, Hathaway and Athena approach. Jolie and Chieming notice a polite distance between the pair. Evidently, to Jolie and Chieming's considerable disappointment, nothing has sparked up between them yet.

Hathaway grins at the sight of Jolie's tiny, curvaceous figure sprawled on the hood of red sports car, "If you don't mind, Jolie, I need to drive that away now."

"This is your car?" Jolie says, getting off the hood with a very graceful somersault, "Sorry. If I knew it was…"

"Don't worry about it," Hathaway says charmingly, "I should have taken a picture while I could. 'Sexy Federal Forces Babe on Sports Car' would have been huge!"

Jolie replies with a grin, "I wouldn't mind being a pinup girl."

Athena cuts through the merriment, putting a hand on her protégé's shoulder, "All right, pinup girl, we need to report back to base. We're still doing reveille at the usual hour tomorrow."

"Right, Captain," Jolie says, folding her hands behind her head and walking towards where they had parked their borrowed Federal Forces land rover.

Jolie turns to say goodbye to Chieming Noah and exchange Uniweb IDs and phone numbers for future chats. Likewise, Hathaway and Athena turn to say their goodbyes.

"It was wonderful spending time with you tonight," Hathaway says, "Will you be in Shanghai again? Do you think we might be able to meet up sometime?"

"I'm going to be in the city quite frequently during the next week or so," Athena replies, "but you probably won't see much of me. Military business."

"More secrets?" Hathaway grins.

"You could say that," Athena says.

"Well, good night then, Captain," Hathaway says.

"Athena," the commanding officer of the Centurion Team says in response, her face lighting up with a smile, "I was joking earlier, although I've enjoyed your calling me 'Captain Ibaz' all evening like the people I work with do. It can be 'Athena' from now on, though."

"Good night then, Athena," Hathaway says gently.

"Good night, Hathaway," Athena answers.

A red sports car and a dull olive military jeep depart the Shanghai waterfront for different destinations.

The jeep speeds towards Whampoa Base, located thirty kilometers outside of Shanghai. Athena is at the wheel, and Jolie rides shotgun. To Jolie's irritation, Athena drives the vehicle at precisely the legal speed limit of 70 km/h.

Athena has no problem with Jolie operating a multibillion-credit prototype mobile suit in combat, but she will not be a passenger in any automobile driven by Jolie. As Athena told Jolie half-jokingly once before: "I'll gladly fight and die alongside you in space, Jolie, but I'll be damned if I'm going to break my neck riding shotgun with you if you flip one of these land rovers over while turning a corner too fast."

The drive back to the base for Athena and Jolie is not a quiet one, as Jolie plies question after question about what had happened at the restaurant between Athena and Hathaway. Much to Jolie's frustration, Athena answers these with "yes" or "no" when she can, and simply refuses to answer when she can't.

"But he's soooo good looking," Jolie implores her friend, "and he's a real gentleman too."

"So why aren't you interested in him?" Athena says, attempting to turn Jolie's argument back on her.

Jolie replies, "Dammit, 'Thena: don't change the subject! This isn't about me, it's about you! You can't tell me that you haven't even thought about it. I know what it's like. I'm a woman just like you!"

"You're a girl," Athena replies more factually than judgmentally, focused on the road ahead, "Physically, you've got another year or two of growth ahead of you. Emotionally and intellectually…"

"All right, all right," Jolie says, not eager to be on the receiving end of another of Athena's lectures, "but it doesn't hurt anything to get to know someone and find some things in common, right? I think you and Hathaway…"

Athena says, "He works for the CFM, you know…"

That revelation floors Jolie a bit, finally shutting her up (as Athena intended). During the past few months, the Earth Federation Government has been doing its best to shut down the CFM, which is known to be an important part of the ISRLA's propaganda machine.

Jolie takes a minute to process that, but all she can come with is, "But. That doesn't… well, OK, but…"

Athena adds, "I think there's more to it than that. Some things about Hathaway Noah don't quite add up. I feel pretty certain that he's much more than he lets on. There's much more to him than there appears to be."

"You don't think he's **Mafty,** do you?" Jolie queries.

"Stranger things have happened," Athena replies noncommittally.

Jolie remains silent. It's hopeless. Here she is, trying to play matchmaker for Athena, and all Athena wants to do with Prince Charming is subject him to an interrogation.

_Not all men are enemies, Athena,_ Jolie thinks to herself, _for once, you need to let your heart do the thinking, not your brain._

Assuming that Athena has a heart, that is, a condition that Jolie questions more and more each day.

Several hours later, in the wilderness outside of Shanghai in the direction opposite of Whampoa Base, a lone red sports car drives through a deserted wooded area, its headlights turned off. The driver maneuvers the car stealthily through the darkness.

Hathaway Noah parks his GT-900 sports car and disembarks from it. The young man extracts a cigarette from an inner pocket of his parka and lights it.

Soon, a figure approaches in the darkness. In a low, quiet voice, the figure says, "Good evening, Mafty."

Hathaway takes a look at his watch and replies, "You mean 'morning.' It's 2:30 already."

"I stand corrected," the dark figure says, "would you like to see it?"

"I didn't come out here to take in the scenery," Hathaway replies.

"Come with me, then," the figure replies.

Hathaway and the dark-garbed man pass through a barbed wire fence onto a snow-laden field, crossing the field and walking towards what appears to be an abandoned agricultural building…a large barn that was once the centerpiece of a sprawling farm, now long since abandoned.

"Don't patrols from Whampoa ever come out here?" Hathaway asks.

"Hardly," the other man replies, "they're that complacent these days. Makes our lives easier."

The two men enter the building. Lying prone on the ground, covered by a large canvas tarp is evidently a mobile suit.

"RMS-106CS Hizack Sniper Custom," the man, an engineer in the employ of the ISRLA says, "completely refurbished and upgraded with the latest tracking and attack system from Anaheim Electronics."

Hathaway Noah walks around the tarp-covered mecha, inspecting it carefully.

At 06:00 later that morning, Captain Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh listen as Captain Anh Lu, Chief Mobile Suit Engineer at Whampoa Base, explains the work his technicians are performing to the Special Forces' mobile suits.

"Your mecha were designed primarily for combat in Low-G or Zero-G conditions," Lu says, "but are adaptable to all environmental conditions on Earth. During the winter months in northern Asia, what the mecha have to contend with in addition to the enemy is the severely cold and wet weather. You probably listened to the weather report this morning and heard about the snow storm that's supposed to hit us this afternoon. It's very difficult for mobile suits to operate in those conditions without certain modifications. These extra vernier thruster pods the technicians are attaching to your mobile suit's lower legs will supplement the main thrusters to help you maneuver across the snow. Also, since visual ID is extremely difficult when…"

Athena listens intently to the engineer's explanation, taking notes and asking questions. Jolie spaces out again. So mobile suits don't move well in the snow without special thrusters. She doesn't need some engineer to tell her that.

Jolie is still scheming up ways to bring Athena and Hathaway closer together. The previous night, before the mandatory 22:00 lights out, she managed to get a message out to Chieming Noah via Uniweb messenger. When she checked her Datapad first thing in the morning, Chieming had already sent back a half dozen suggestions.

"You get all that?" Athena asks Jolie.

"What?" Jolie replies, snapping out of her daydream.

"Chief Engineer Lu's recommendations for operating our MS in cold weather conditions," Athena says.

"Oh," Jolie says, "Sure. No sweat."

Athena sighs, then says, "I'm going to be in town again today, Jolie. It seems like the Security Council and the two generals want me at ALL the meetings from here until the end of the conference. You're going to be in charge again."

"All right," Jolie says, "when will you be back?"

"By midday, I hope," Athena replies, "there's supposed to be a storm coming in this afternoon, remember?"

So saying, Athena heads towards the dormitory room she's sharing with Jolie to shower and change out of her work coveralls and into her dress uniform.

"Hey, 'Thena," Jolie calls out as she follows Athena.

"What is it, Jolie?" Athena asks, knowing and dreading the question.

"Are you going to be seeing Hathaway Noah again?" comes as predicted.

"I have an extremely sensitive, high-security conference to attend," Athena replies, "you think I'm likely to have time to stop by for a social call?"

"Well, just asking. You don't have to be all touchy about it, 'Thena," Jolie says.

The two enter the room that they have been sharing together. The enlisted troops are bunked four to a room. Athena and Jolie, as officers, have the relative luxury of a two-person room. The room's furnishings are Spartan: two simple, no-frills single beds and two no-nonsense wooden desks and chairs. The Hyatt Regency it is not.

Athena gathers her uniform and a compact toiletry bag and heads for the female officers' communal bathroom. Jolie follows along, unwilling to be satisfied unless Athena gives her the answers she wants to hear.

With one quick, graceful motion, Athena strips the skintight work coverall from her body, leaving her naked as a newborn. Her femininely graceful, curvaceous figure is visible for only the briefest of instants before she slips ghostlike into the shower.

"Anyway," Jolie prattles on, "you must have noticed how Hathaway kept staring at you last night. He's totally got the…"

Athena turns on the shower, drowning out Jolie's voice, "Can't hear you, Jo."

Jolie, sensing that she's getting the brush off, leaves the bathroom muttering, "Stubborn bitch."

Athena, running her hands through her drenched hair, mutters to herself, "Nosey little bitch."

Still, Athena reflects as the warm stream of water runs over her, Jolie isn't wrong about Hathaway Noah. He is indeed a very handsome and charming young man. It's a shame, really.

Because, Athena is assured, by the end of the week, one of them would likely be dead.

The conference takes up most of the morning and much of the afternoon. Athena assists General Noah and General Blackhead in laying out their understanding of the ISRLA threat, which Athena understands in greater detail than does either of the two generals because she has seen and dealt with it firsthand. Athena advances the theory that the ISRLA is likely receiving support from large corporate backers in the private sector with anti-Federation agendas (or at least, would stand to benefit from the Federation's troubles), and possibly from the Neo Zeon remnants in the Outer Solar System as well. General Noah is clearly pleased to have Athena there; General Blackhead, however, seems to harbor misgivings about having a junior officer address the Security Council directly.

By 15:30, the meeting has adjourned for the day. General Noah, General Blackhead, and Captain Ibaz share cups of coffee at the commissary located in the underground complex.

"Thanks to your arguments and observations, Athena," General Noah beams, "I do think the Security Council will begin to take the ISRLA threat more seriously and provide us with more support at Garrison Noah."

"It'll largely depend on how that support will be used, sir," Athena replies, "the situation in the colonies, as you know, is extremely delicate. We _could_ go into Side 3 in force and root out the ISRLA, but that would be playing into their hands. If the Federation uses direct force to snuff out the ISRLA, it's likely that the entire Earth Sphere would rise up against the Federation."

"You're right," Bright Noah concedes, "we need to be extremely cautious about how we play our hand here."

General Blackhead, who has been simmering quietly up to this point, adds acerbically, "If you ask me, we've been much too cautious already. I think the ISRLA is counting on the fact that we won't react more strongly than we have to make the Federation look weak. Have you head the rumors about Side 1 and Side 5 starting their own independence movements? It'll be just like Eastern Europe in the final days of the Cold War back in the 20th Century."

"With all due respect, sir," Athena remarks fairly, "that historical scenario ended positively, with minimal bloodshed and the rise of democratic states in place of oligarchic tyrannies. Had the Soviet Union taken aggressive action, the outcome likely would have been catastrophic."

Not wishing to prolong a historical debate between Blackhead and Athena, Bright intercedes, "We'll have plenty to think about after we return to space. Athena, did you say our latest intelligence reports have the Neo Zeon on a civil war footing right now?

"Yes, sir," Athena replies, "In fact, it's been going on for quite some time now…possibly as long as two years. Ever since the Neo Zeon remnants fled to the Outer Solar System after Char Aznable's defeat in 0093, the remaining generals have basically carved up the Neo Zeon military apparatus and turned on each other. They're vying for Neo Zeon's corpse."

"That's their business," Blackhead says, "a Neo Zeon civil war is a good thing for us. As long as they're busy fighting each other, they won't bother us."

"I'm not so sanguine about that, sir," Athena replies, "I think sooner or later, the Federation will be dragged into that conflict as well."

"I agree," General Noah says, "if there's one thing I've learned during the past twenty years, it's to never underestimate the resilience of Zeon fanaticism. The Ghost of the Zabis will haunt us for a long time to come."

To that, there is only silence. Athena draws out her handkerchief and wipes her hands with it.

Athena finally leaves the underground federal compound at 16:30. The skies over the city are growing dark. As promised, snow begins to fall.

Athena boards her borrowed military land rover and guns the engine. She drives away from the curb along the main boulevard and turns onto a residential street that she knows is a shortcut to the main highway leading to Whampoa Base. She travels scarcely two kilometers when the land rover's engine overheats and the jeep's electrical systems shut down. Athena pulls the land rover to the curb.

_I'm glad our mobile suits are more durable than our utility vehicles are,_ Athena thinks sourly as she opens the hood of the vehicle. Making a quick examination, Athena identifies the problem: _Just as I thought…clank pulley disabled._

Athena pulls out her comlink and contacts Jolie at Whampoa Base, "This is Centurion Leader to Centurion Two."

Jolie's girlish voice responds immediately, "Hey, 'Thena!"

Athena says, "My vehicle has died on me, Jolie. I'm still in Shanghai with a broken clank pulley, and it's started to snow."

Jolie says, "Want me to drive out there to pick you up?"

Athena replies, "Negative. The team can't have both officers away from the base at this hour. Besides, you'll probably get snowed in halfway into town."

"I could always come in with the Centurion Gundam," Jolie suggests.

Athena laughs lightly, "Sure, and terrify tens of thousands of drivers at the height of the afternoon homebound commute! They'll drum us out of the Special Forces for that one."

"So what are you gonna do?" Jolie asks.

Athena replies, "I'm going to call for service from the military motor pool."

Jolie says, "That'll take hours, you know?"

"What choice do I have?" Athena says, "I'll probably be in by 20:00. Watch over the squad until I get back."

"Roger that, Captain," Jolie replies.

"Centurion Leader, out," Athena finishes.

The snow begins to fall somewhat more rapidly, but still gently, as Athena contacts the military motor pool. The dispatcher notes her location and tells her that the wait is estimated to be ninety minutes.

Which in reality, Athena knows, is probably closer to two and a half hours, possibly longer now that the snow has started to fall.

Athena sighs and resigns herself to the long wait. She is in a residential district, a few kilometers from the city center. Would it be worth the walk to find a warm café to sit in while waiting?

Athena's thoughts are interrupted by the playful voices of children, who delightedly emerge from nearby homes to play in the snow. The children, aged between six and ten and numbering at least a dozen, take great delight in pelting each other with balls of freshly fallen snow.

Athena watches the children play with amusement. Seldom has she had the opportunity to just slow down and enjoy life's simpler pleasures like this. Her life has been a constant pursuit, or escape from pursuit. Quiet moments like this are rare. She envies the carefree existence of the children playing before her.

Without warning, one of the kids picks up a snowball and throws it not at any of the other children, but at Athena! The snowball pelts her on the side of her face.

"Hey, pretty officer girl!" says the little boy who threw the snowball, "Come play with us!"

_Why not?_ Athena smiles.

Athena scoops up dual snowballs in her fine, delicate hands and pelts the children back. This is one kind of war Athena can fully join in without any agony of remorse or guilt.

Athena laughs with delight as she and children exchange salvoes of snowballs. Her heart has not felt this light, this joyous in many years…maybe ever. It is a moment she cherishes, and wishes could last forever.

There is a price to be paid in all wars, including ones fought entirely with snowballs.

The fun went on for about thirty minutes, until the children's families began calling them indoors for supper. As suddenly as they had appeared, the children dispersed back into their homes, leaving Athena alone on the street again.

Athena's overcoat protected her body and upper legs from the flurry of snowballs the children struck her with, but she had no defense for her legs and feet. Her Federal Forces uniform boots were designed primarily for deep space environments, not snow. Athena's socks are soaked with melted ice water, and her feet are freezing.

Darkness has begun to fall over the city, as the glittering lights of Shanghai light once again. Athena puts in another call to the motor pool. "About another hour," the dispatcher tells her.

_Which means two if I'm lucky,_ Athena thinks wryly. She begins to toy with the idea of calling Jolie in with the Centurion Gundam or the Cour De Leon, regulations be damned. Getting thrown into the brig couldn't be much worse than this.

The snow continues to fall, constantly, but not heavily. Athena considers taking refuge in the land rover, but decides against it; she has no desire to be buried alive.

The temperature drops as the sun begins to disappear on the western horizon. Athena draws out a cigarette and lights it. The smoky fumes of the cigarette provide little warmth.

"You know, smoking is very unladylike," a newly familiar voice cuts in.

Athena turns her head to find Hathaway Noah leaning casually against a nearby city lamppost.

Athena exhales a cloud of smoke before replying, "Pointing it out is ungentlemanly."

Hathaway shrugs, "I never said that I'm gentlemanly."

Athena replies, "I never said that I'm ladylike."

The pair laughs softly, the white, warm steam of human exhalation visible in the cold air of the Chinese winter. Athena and Hathaway's humor clearly operates on the same wavelength.

Hathaway broaches the question, "What are you doing out here?"

Athena replies, "Well, I was supposed to be on my way back to the base now, but the clank pulley on my land rover here died on me, so I'm stranded."

Hathaway muses, "Hmmm. Too bad I know jack about fixing cars. I drive them, but I don't fix them."

Athena says, "I could if I had the parts and tools, but no luck there right now."

"In that case," Hathaway says, "why don't you come over to my place for a while? I live just up the block. It's too cold to be standing out here, and it's going to get colder after the sun is all the way down."

Athena takes just a second to consider it. Her toes are numb with coldness, "You wouldn't mind?"

Hathaway smiles, "Mind? You just saved me the trouble of making up a thousand excuses to get you to come over."

Hathaway extends his hand to Athena. Athena takes it. The warmth of his hand envelops the coldness of hers.

Hathaway leads Athena to his apartment a block up the street, leaving the disabled land rover to suffer the coldness of the Shanghai evening alone.

Athena's doffed boots stand next to a warm fire in Hathaway's apartment. Next to them lie her soggy socks, now slowly being dried by the fire's heat. The comforting warmth of the flames greatly improve Athena's mood.

Further improving Athena's mood is the foot rub that Hathaway is giving her to bring warmth and circulation back into her nearly frozen feet. The constant, but gentle rubbing of Hathaway's soft hands and the application of his warm breath on Athena's slender, elegant arches and toes are superbly comforting.

Athena bites her lower lip gently as circulation begins to return to her feet, bringing with it the telltale feeling of "needles."

"Better?" Hathaway asks Athena gently.

"Much," Athena replies, "thank you so much."

"Glad to," Hathaway replies, meaning it.

_Even when I was a Duchess, I was never pampered like this,_ Athena thinks to herself with a degree of amusement.

"I think that'll be fine, Hathaway," Athena says, "I don't want to tire you out there."

Athena says so out of courtesy, but as far as she can tell, Hathaway is enjoying giving her the foot rub even more than she is enjoying receiving it.

Nevertheless, Hathaway grins, "All right. Let me get you something to wear on those lovely feet of yours."

Hathaway disappears into his bedroom.

Athena rises from where she has been sitting on the couch of Hathaway's living room and makes a closer examination of her surroundings, absorbing the details around her.

It is a modestly, but tastefully furnished apartment, most likely built after the end of the One Year War. The furniture is modern and new, combining function and comfort. Athena reasons that Hathaway has not been living here very long, and most likely, not very frequently. The place has more the feel of a temporary stopover than a permanent home. The only indication that contradicts that impression is the presence of several paintings hung on the apartment's living room walls, apparent reproductions of classic works by centuries-dead masters.

Athena wonders why she doesn't feel more vulnerable standing barefoot in the apartment of a young man she had met scarcely twenty-four hours ago, but somehow, she doesn't. The wooden floorboards of Hathaway's modest, but well kept apartment feel wonderfully organic under the soles of Athena's feet. For someone whose life has been mainly spent in space colonies and spaceships, and dressed variously in royal raiment and military uniforms, it's a rare and cherished feeling of complete naturalness. It helps Athena appreciate why Colonel Char often told her that to live on the Earth was a privilege, and one that humanity had thoughtlessly squandered.

Hathaway emerges from his bedroom with a pair of slippers…his own. "These are all I have," he says somewhat apologetically, "but you're welcome to them."

"Thank you," Athena says, sliding her feet into slippers slightly too large for her.

"Like a drink?" Hathaway offers.

"I'd appreciate one," Athena replies, "thank you."

"Make yourself at home," Hathaway says, "I'll be back in just a minute."

As Hathaway disappears into the kitchen, Athena admires some of the young man's wall paintings. Hathaway Noah might be young, but he certainly has taste.

Athena steps closer to one of the paintings. Her admiring smile soon turns into a scowl of realization.

Paul Cezanne, French Post-impressionist painter, produced some of the finest paintings of the early 20th Century. Much of his work was lost in the numerous calamities that have besieged humanity in the two centuries since Cezanne last put down his paintbrush. What few samples that have survived have seen their value skyrocket. A Cezanne original in U.C. 0098 could fetch prices on the collector's market that would buy a mobile suit.

Inexplicably, Cezanne's original _Still Life With Curtain_, painted in 1895 of the old Gregorian calendar, hangs on a wall in Hathaway Noah's apartment in suburban Shanghai. Nearby is another of Cezanne's classic works, _Les Grandes Baigneuses_, painted in 1906, the year Cezanne died. This one too, Athena notes, is authentic.

"Do you like Cezanne?" Hathaway asks, carrying a bottle of wine and two glasses.

"Very much," Athena replies, "I've long had an affinity for Cezanne's work."

"Got those prints cheap at a local bazaar," Hathaway replies, "I'm not much of an art collector, but they do liven up these dull rooms a bit."

Athena says nothing, but she knows that Hathaway is transparently lying. Athena can distinguish real paintings from cheap prints, and Hathaway Noah, CFM staff writer, somehow has possession of two priceless 20th Century treasures. Athena has a hunch how he obtained the paintings, and what their purpose is.

The two seat themselves comfortably on a plush, soft rug in front of the fire.

Hathaway hands Athena a flute-shaped glass of clear white wine. The pair toasts each other and takes a sip.

"Chardonnay," Athena identifies the taste, "excellent vintage."

Hathaway says, "U.C. 0078 – good year."

Athena puts down her glass, "Some would say the last good year, but this dates to 0074."

Hathaway looks at Athena with admiration, "Is there any lie you can't see through?"

"Everybody has their blind spots," Athena says, swirling the wine in its glass, "I do what I can to keep people out of mine."

Hathaway challenges, "If they are in your blind spot, how would you even know they're there?"

Athena replies, "One should never rely on her eyes alone. There are other, more comprehensive senses."

Hathaway says, "You're talking like a Newtype."

"If I were a Newtype," Athena says, "I would have predicted my car troubles today and just stayed in bed."

"But then, you wouldn't have come here," Hathaway offers.

"Thank goodness I can't predict the future, then," Athena returns.

"I hope I never end up in your blind spot," Hathaway says.

"Because…?" Athena ventures.

"Because," Hathaway says, leaning his face closer to Athena's, "I want you to always see me."

The space between their lips closes slowly until it is a space no more. The kiss is long, deep, and passionate, sending an electric thrill through both of them.

Their lips disengage. Both are out of breath. How long had they stopped breathing?

Hathaway breaks the silence with an utterly absurd, but yet somehow utterly fitting, "Hey, are you hungry?"

Now that Hathaway mentions it, Athena realizes that she _is_. She hasn't eaten since that tiny triangle chicken salad sandwich she had for lunch...eight hours ago. It's 19:00: about an hour after the Centurions usually have dinner back at the base. No wonder Athena feels hungry.

"Wait a minute," Athena says with a smile, "don't tell me you haven't gotten over not being able to pay for dinner last night."

"No," Hathaway says, "I'm broke anyway. But if you like home cooking, I can whip up a gourmet meal really quick."

"You cook too," Athena remarks, "Now I'm really impressed."

"Wait here?" Hathaway whispers.

"No," Athena says, "I'd like to…I'd like to join you."

Ten minutes later, the pair is inside the kitchenette of Hathaway's apartment. Athena slices mushrooms and bell peppers as Hathaway beats some eggs. The pair then works the frying pan and skillet to perfection, like master chefs who have worked together for years. Between them, the two soon produce a delectable mushroom and pepper omelet.

In the dining room minutes later, Athena takes a bite of their collaboration. She nods with approval, "Quite good."

Hathaway expresses similar approval, "You're not bad in the kitchen either."

"Survival skill," Athena remarks, taking another sip of wine, "it's either that or eating Jolie's cooking."

Athena's slight shudder brings a laugh out of Hathaway as he remembers Jolie's joke about military provisions.

"What doesn't come out of me from one end usually comes out the other," Hathaway and Athena quote in unison, causing them both to laugh.

Hathaway says, "Your friend, Jolie. She's a real hottie."

"Don't even think about it, Hathaway," Athena says with teasing admonition, "she's practically my little sister. You break her heart, and I'll break your balls…although knowing Jolie, she'd probably take care of that herself."

Hathaway grins, "Jealous now, eh?"

"Yeah, right," Athena remarks, amused by the preposterous idea of her and Jolie at odds over a man.

Hathaway says somewhat more seriously, "Jolie is cute, but she's just a girl. She's the same age as my sister."

That brings a laugh from Athena, "You're only a little over a year older than she is, Hathaway…here you are talking like you're some kind of graybeard."

Hathaway says, "And you're only about a year older than I am. Does that make you an old lady, Miss Nineteen-Year Old Special Forces Commander?"

Positively an old hag," Athena answers, finishing the last of her share of the omelet.

"They don't make hags like they used to," Hathaway says, drinking in Athena's youthful beauty with his wine.

"Ask my squadmates," Athena says, "they'll tell you how ugly I can get when I lose my temper."

"I had no idea the Federal Forces were recruiting blind soldiers these days," Hathaway says.

Wiping her mouth with a napkin, Athena says, "All right, that's enough flattery. It's almost 20:00…8 p.m. for you civilians. I've got to get back to the base within two hours, or there'll be hell to pay."

Hathaway Noah looks outside, "Looks like the snow's let up. Should be safe to drive. You sure you have to go so soon?"

"Some of us have to work in morning," Athena replies dryly.

"Right," Hathaway smiles, "put your socks and boots back on. I'll warm up the car."

As Athena pulls her now dried socks and boots back onto her attractive feet, Hathaway guns up the engine of his sports car. Within minutes, the couple is en rout via the main highway towards Whampoa Base.

Hathaway's sleek red sports car pulls up to the gate of Whampoa Base at 20:45. Hathaway and Athena exchange one final kiss before the Centurion Team Leader disembarks from the car.

"Thanks for everything tonight, Hathaway," Athena says, "we'll meet again."

As Athena prepares to enter the gate, Hathaway says, "Hold on. Are you doing anything tomorrow night?"

Athena stops and replies, "Tomorrow is Saturday night. The squad has the night off, so I can be free if I want to be. Why?"

Hathaway says, "There's a formal dance being held by the local division of Anaheim Enterprises. Lots of big shots from the business, politics, and the media will be there. I've got an invitation, but no date, so…um,"

"What time tomorrow?" Athena smiles.

"7 p.m. That's 19:00 for you soldiers," Hathaway replies.

"Pick me up at six, then," Athena says.

Hathaway watches adoringly as Athena passes through the gate into Whampoa Base.

It's past 21:00 by the time that Athena enters the dormitory facility where the Special Forces are temporarily quartered.

Jolie, wearing a nightshirt that is entirely too short for her, sits on one of the dormitory lounge's beanbags, long, smooth, and slender legs crossed temptingly "Indian"-style. The pretty teenager is reading some sort of paperback book, which rather surprises Athena.

Jolie glances up from her book at the clock mounted on the lounge wall, notes the time, then glances at Athena with mocking reproval, "20:00, huh?"

Athena runs her hands tiredly through her hair, "Yes, I know. I ran into some delays on the way back. Where's the rest of the squad?"

"In bed already," Jolie says, "the training regimen you left behind for us exhausted them."

Athena grins, "All except you, of course."

"Hey, well, you know my reputation as a bundle of energy!" Jolie remarks brightly.

"What are you reading?" Athena asks, hoping that Jolie has started taking her advice about feeding her mind.

"Old story I used to love when I was a kid!" Jolie replies, showing Athena the book.

Athena takes the paperback novel, borrowed from the lounge library, and looks at the cover: _The Giant Eagle and Its Companion_, by Louis Cha, known in Asia as Jin Yong. A _wuxia_ adventure/romance novel from the 20th Century.

"Ever read that before?" Jolie asks, "It's been translated into many languages."

"Yes, I know," Athena replies, "I read it in the original Chinese years ago when I was learning the language. This novel, along with Confucius' _The Analects_ and Sun Tzu's _Art of War_, helped me become literate in Chinese. Saw one of the movie adaptations too…the last one was made in U.C. 0083, I think."

Jolie rolls her eyes, remembering that Athena is fluent and literate in fifteen different languages, Chinese being one of them.

"Did you like it?" Jolie asks.

"The adventure story was quite good," Athena remarks, flipping through the book, "hated the romance story, though."

Jolie uncrosses her lovely legs and kneels on the beanbag, pulling forth the hem of her too-short nightshirt for a little more coverage, "Mommy used to read that story to me every night before bedtime. It's still my favorite story even now! I think it's so romantic how devoted Yang Guo was to Dragon Girl. I really hope I can meet a boy someday who'll love me like that."

Athena rolls up the paperback and waves it admonishingly at Jolie as she offers it back to her younger charge, "You know, love stories like this are just fairy tales. It's not very realistic to hope for anything like it."

"Oh, really?" Jolie challenges, taking the novel back from Athena's outstretched hand, "What about Hathaway Noah, then? Did you see him in town today?"

"I spent the last few hours with him," Athena says matter-of-factly, "he was the one who gave me a ride back to the base."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Jolie says, caught off guard. Springing forth with catlike agility from the beanbag, she attaches herself to Athena's arm, "What's this? Tell me more!"

"I was getting hypothermia waiting for those idiots at the military motor pool to dispatch a vehicle to help me," Athena says, "Hathaway happened to live just a block from where my land rover stopped on me. He invited me over to warm up. We had dinner together, and he drove me back. That's all."

Jolie smiles with satisfied glee, "Hah! I _knew_ there was a real woman inside you!"

Pouring herself a glass of hot tea from the lounge Thermos bottle, Athena asks, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Jolie says, "I mean, that's great! You really need to get out there and meet somebody, 'Thena! You're a beautiful girl, but you're gonna end up an old maid if you don't stop obsessing about the war and start thinking about your own future!"

Athena is amused, "Now _you're_ the one teaching _me?_"

Jolie replies, "Hey, when it comes to book smarts and strategy and things like that, you know way more than I do, but I can teach you lots of things about relationships with guys!"

"Right," Athena says sarcastically, sipping the tea, "I know that the men on the base and in Side 7 hit on you all the time. They hit on me too. That doesn't make you some kind of relationships expert, Jolie. Good grief, you're only sixteen!"

"Sixteen," Jolie says, running her hands through her long, luscious hair and adopting a seductive pose, "but a veteran heartbreaker."

"That I do believe," Athena says in response, meaning it, "Anyway, let's get to bed. We have a long day of training exercises tomorrow from 05:00 to 17:00."

"Want to go into town with me again tomorrow night?" Jolie asks.

"I'll be going into town tomorrow night," Athena says, "but you're going to have to party with the rest of the squad. I've got a date with Hathaway. A formal dance being thrown by Anaheim downtown tomorrow night."

Jolie's eyes widen, "Date? With Hathaway? Damn, 'Thena, you learn faster than I thought."

"Don't get the wrong idea," Athena says, "I'm curious about Hathaway, but not for the reasons you're imagining."

"What do you mean?" Jolie asks.

"I just have a hunch," Athena says cryptically, and leaves it at that.

Early the following morning, the Centurion Team and the remnants of the other Special Forces squads that escorted Generals Noah and Blackhead to Earth are testing the new modifications to their mobile suits.

A dozen assorted Jegans, Guncannon-100s, and Athena's Cour De Leon and Jolie's Centurion Gundam skate across the snowy fields outside of Whampoa Base in the Chinese wilderness, hovering on vernier jets built into the mecha's feet. Captain Anh Lu and his technicians' modifications have made the mobile suits much better suited for combat on Earth, especially the snowy conditions that now prevail in the region.

"Centurion Leader to all units," Athena commands from the cockpit of the Cour De Leon, "Prepare to commence ground targeting simulation sequence. Take this seriously, people: we're using live fire, and so are the targets."

Cpl. Anna Horowitz has the targeting data on her GM-IV AWAC's computer. There's minimal Minovsky particle interference down here, and her MS's radar is working, "Targets acquired at Bearing mark-seven-zero. Identified as RMS-106 Hizack, twelve units in number. Standard armaments."

"Select a target and hit it hard," Athena instructs.

Twelve RMS-106 Hizack mobile suits, left over from the Gryps Conflict a decade ago, are concealed within a heavily forested area about a kilometer north of the Centurion Team's current location. These mobile suits, set aside for training purposes, are automated by their onboard combat computers. No pilots sit within their cockpits. The Centurions and other Special Forces pilots are free to do as much damage as they please.

The team locks the targets in formation and prepares to attack.

The Hizacks take the initiative away, firing from beam rifles, heavy machineguns, and missile pod racks.

"Evasive maneuvers," Athena orders, dodging fire from a Hizack's beam rifle.

Jolie's Centurion Gundam appears on the scene, "Let me show you guys how it's done!" Jolie enthuses.

Jolie extracts the Centurion Gundam's beam rifle, hitting a Hizack dead-center with a single shot. Before that first target even goes down, Jolie barrels into a second Hizack, lifting the target mecha with the Centurion Gundam's mighty arms. She uses this second Hizack as a shield to intercept the beam blast of a third Hizack. Before the target in the Centurion Gundam's metalshod hands explodes from the fatal damage it has suffered, Jolie hurls it at the Hizack that fired the deadly shot. Both mecha are destroyed.

Beam fire from a fourth Hizack nearly nails the Centurion Gundam, but Jolie dodges the blast at the last possible instant, raising the Centurion Gundam's own beam rifle to blast the Hizack to smoking ruin.

A fifth Hizack comes at the Centurion Gundam with hits Heat Hawk, slashing the axe-like weapon at the Centurion Gundam's nuclear fusion backpack energy unit.

Jolie twists the Centurion Gundam around to dodge the blow, drawing out the Gundam's beam saber. The laser sword twists around the Hizack's weapon, finally severing the Hizack's weapon hand at the wrist. Jolie presses the advantage and stabs the beam saber through the Hizack's center, disabling it.

Jolie launches the Centurion Gundam high into the air, blasting three shots from its beam rifle to immolate three more Hizacks. She cuts her mecha's thrusters to bring the Centurion Gundam hard on another Hizack crouching under a canopy of tall trees. The force of the landing crushes the Hizack.

A ninth Hizack gets the drop on Jolie (or rather, Jolie allows it to) and puts the Centurion Gundam in a full nelson. Jolie flips the Hizack over with a brilliant judo move, finishing it with a beam saber slice that cuts the Hizack in half lengthwise.

Two more Hizacks appear, firing their beam rifles at the Centurion Gundam. Jolie blocks with the Gundam's arm-mounted shield, only to find that the two Hizacks have emptied their missile racks at her.

In desperation, Jolie fires the Centurion Gundam's own missiles to counter. A tremendous explosion ensues.

From behind the cloud of burning metal and fire emerges the Centurion Gundam, beam rifle blazing. The final two Hizacks go down.

Only thirty seconds had passed since the simulation began.

Aboard the other Centurion Team mobile suits, and in the control tower at Whampoa Base, the several dozen who witnessed Jolie's awesome display of prowess are left slack-jawed and bug-eyed. They can't believe what they've just seen.

"Hah-HAH!" Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe of the Centurion Team finally enthuses, pounding the control console of his Jegan excitedly, "Lawdy, mama! Did you guys see that?!"

"Jolie, you are just amazing…" Sgt. Tomo Higashi agrees.

Cpl. Anna Horowitz confirms, "Twelve targets neutralized in thirty seconds. That's a new record."

Only one observer seems unimpressed.

"Centurion Leader to all units," Athena's voice comes darkly over the tactical net, "Training maneuvers are suspended until replacement target units are provided. Return to dock."

Back at the hangar, Jolie emerges from the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, for once coming out the cockpit exhilarated rather than spaced out, dizzy, or nauseous. She feels quite proud of her accomplishment.

_I'm going to be the best mobile suit pilot EVER,_ Jolie thinks with great self-satisfaction.

Jolie sees Athena striding towards her. The Centurion Team Leader does not look happy. Typical. Athena is usually grouchy after training exercises.

Without warning, Athena slaps Jolie HARD across the teenager's left cheek. The blow is so quick and so unexpected that even Jolie fails to dodge it.

"Ow!" Jolie complains, "What the hel…?"

"Haven't you been listening to anything I've been teaching you?!" Athena demands furiously, "You're supposed to follow orders, not showboat! You'll get yourself and your teammates killed pulling crap like that!"

Jolie's eyes flash angrily, "You're just jealous 'cause you know you aren't half as good a pilot as I am! Until I joined, you were the top ace in the Special Forces! But I…"

"Shut up, Lieutenant!" Athena orders, "You're confined to quarters for the rest of the morning training session!"

"What?!" Jolie says in disbelief, "But…!"

"Get to quarters now, or I'm throwing you into the brig!"Athena says, raising her voice.

Jolie begins to comply, but cannot help saying under her breath, "Bitch."

The remark, though barely a whisper, does not escape Athena's ears. She responds with a second slap, this one with the back of her hand, catching Jolie on the right cheek.

Angry tears fill Jolie's eyes. Delicate, gloved hand covering the spot where Athena has just stricken her a second time, the teenager storms off to her quarters.

Athena looks at her own gloved hand, the one that she just used to slap Jolie not once, but twice. She has never lost her cool with Jolie like that before. Although Jolie did indeed make a serious error in judgment and needed to be disciplined, Athena knows that she was much too harsh on the girl.

_What the hell did I do that for?_ Athena wonders.

The rest of the Centurion Team has been quietly watching the drama between their commanding and executive officers from the sidelines. They are stunned by the unpleasant scene they have just witnessed.

_Nice going, Athena,_ the honey-blonde Centurion Team leader thinks wryly to herself, _Just what the squad needs to see: drama between their two officers. Stupid! Stupid!_ Athena wants to kick herself.

Sighing, Athena tells the team, "See to maintenance on your mobile suits."

Knowing that their commanding officer is in a foul mood, the Centurions return with immediate, "Yes, ma'am"s.

At around noontime, Athena enters the two-officer room that she is sharing with Jolie. The teenager lies in her bed, pillow pulled over her head. Athena hears a sniffling sound; Jolie is crying.

"Jolie," Athena begins awkwardly, "Jolie, I'm sorry I slapped you this morning. That was out of line. I shouldn't have lost my cool at you like that."

Jolie bolts up suddenly and throws the pillow at Athena, but not hard. Her eyes are red from tears.

"What was with you this morning, anyway?" Jolie demands, "I know I screwed up, but…"

Athena says, "I'm just under a lot of stress right now. At those security conferences I've been attending with Generals Noah and Blackhead, I'm finding out that we're up against much more than we originally thought. That's no excuse, though. I shouldn't have taken it out on you. I don't blame you for being angry at me."

"Forget it," Jolie says, "I was stupid first. I shouldn't have showed off like that. I'm sorry."

"Forgive me?" Athena says softly, with a kind smile.

Jolie wipes away the last of her tears and smiles back, "Yeah. Sure. We're friends, right?"

"The best," Athena agrees.

The two young women embrace each other warmly. It would take much more than the morning's spat to tear apart their deep friendship.

Disengaging from the embrace after a long minute, Athena says, "During afternoon maneuvers, do exactly as you're told, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am," Jolie replies, then she adds, "Say, Athena…you know your date with Hathaway tonight?"

"Oh, no," Athena groans, "not this again."

Jolie persists, "You said it was a formal dance. What are you gonna wear? You're not planning on showing up in uniform are you?"

"Unless I plan to get lynched, no," Athena says, "I have a feeling that crowd doesn't like Federal Forces officers very much."

Jolie asks, "Then…?"

"Not to worry," Athena says with an enigmatic smile, "I've got it all planned out."

The rest of the day goes on without incident. Jolie complies with orders and works within the context of the team. Through the course of the afternoon, the Centurion Team greatly improves its skills at using its mobile suits in cold-weather combat. Athena feels that with another day or two of practice, they will have honed their abilities to near perfection.

At 17:00, the training exercises conclude. The Centurions have the rest of the evening off.

17:35. Jolie waits anxiously in the lounge area. She can't go into her room because Athena is locked in there getting ready for her date with Hathaway. Jolie can't wait to see what Athena's "great plan" entails.

17:40. Athena emerges from the room. Jolie goes wide-eyed in amazement.

Jolie has long recognized Athena as a beauty rivaling herself, but Athena has always somewhat downplayed her gorgeous looks with her elegant, but dull military uniforms. Tonight, however, Athena is positively radiant in a scarlet Chinese _cheongsam_ gown, which perfectly suits her tall, slender figure.

Jolie, having difficulty finding her voice, finally says, "If I were a guy, I would sooooooooo hit on you. You look HOT, 'Thena."

Athena grins, "I guess that means I'm ready to go."

Jolie asks, "How in the world did you get that dress, anyway? I doubt you got it from the Supply Corps."

Athena replies mysteriously, "I've got my resources."

Jolie presses further, "Athena, are you _really_ going out with Hathaway because you like him, or is this another intelligence thing?"

"What do you think?" challenges Athena.

Jolie honestly doesn't know. Her commanding officer is unreadable.

"Don't wait up for me," Athena says as she leaves.

The Anaheim Enterprises Formal Invitational Ball is being held at the La Grande Ballroom in Shanghai's most luxurious hotel, the Chez Savoy. The surroundings are opulent, decorated in a French rococo style. The attendees of the ball are, without exception, the wealthy, powerful, and well-connected. Business leaders. Politicians of various alignments and affiliations. Intellectuals. Everyone is either a blueblood or _nouveau riche_.

No soldiers, however, attend the ball. The gathering disdains the Earth Federation Forces and the government it serves. It is an ill-kept secret that some of the prominent figures at the ball have strong ISR and/or Zeon sympathies. A few, in fact, are former Zeon noblemen.

For these reasons, Athena has taken a second alias while attending the dance. She and Hathaway have agreed that for the duration of the party, she will be known as "Miss Tina Mass," a new friend of Hathaway Noah's.

_Nobody said it was a masquerade ball,_ Athena reflects wryly, _but in a sense, everybody here wears a mask._

Hathaway and Athena arrive at the ball arm-in-arm. Hathaway looks doubly handsome in his tuxedo, hastily pressed into service straight from the dry cleaner earlier in the evening.

A middle-aged gentleman, a finance executive from the Luo Company (a known supporter of anti-Federation activities), greets Hathaway, "Mr. James!"

"Good you see you, Mr. Davis," Hathaway says, shaking the man's hand, "Hope the trading has been good."

"Business is like walking on the moon," Davis replies, "Up, down, up, down. Any juicy new articles, Mr. James?"

"Only the one on my arm here," Hathaway jokes.

Davis had noticed Athena at the same time he first spotted Hathaway in the ballroom, "Who is this lovely creature with you, Mr. James?"

Hathaway replies, "Mr. Davis, allow me to introduce my friend, Miss Tina Mass. She's a political science student at Saint John's University."

"How do you do, Miss Mass?" Davis says cordially.

Athena bows her head demurely, and replies, "It's a wonderful party, sir."

Hathaway tells Athena, "Tina, this is Mr. Roger Davis. He's the Chief Financial Officer of the Luo Company."

"A pleasure, sir," Athena says politely, shaking the man's hand.

Athena has heard about Davis, and is quite familiar with his organization. The Luo Company is officially known as one of the world's major trading companies. That's its legitimate front. Athena knows, however, that the Luo Company is also a vital smuggler of weapons and other military supplies to ISR and Zeon elements.

"Miss Mass," Davis asks casually, "as a student of the political sciences, how do you view the conflict between the Earth Federation and the various political entities in space?"

Athena answers, "It's simply the latest manifestation of the divisions that humanity has always established among itself, sir. There were conflicts among people for millennia before Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon over two hundred years ago."

Davis smiles at Hathaway, "You're a lucky young man, Mr. James. Miss Mass is very intelligent as well as very beautiful."

"Thank you, sir, you're so kind," Athena says pleasantly.

"Tina…Mass?" Davis wonders, "Miss Mass, I hope you don't find that I'm being too forthright, but are you by any chance related to Dr. Sayla Mass, leader of the Independent Spacenoid Republic movement?"

Sayla is Colonel Char's younger sister. When Athena had been under Char's care, Char had often spoken glowingly of his kindhearted, brave, and beautiful younger sister, but Athena had never met her. It was Char and Sayla's foster parents, the Masses, who also took in Athena for a few years after Char perished in combat in U.C. 0093.

"I've been told that she's a distant cousin of mine," Athena tells Davis, "but I've never met her personally."

"She's a brave and principled woman," Davis remarks, "the Spacenoids need a leader like her. Perhaps she is the one who will finally lead them out of the darkness of the Zabi era."

The mention of her true family name, as always, unsettles Athena, but only slightly.

Davis then says, "Mr. James, such a pleasure to see you again, and Miss Mass, indeed a great pleasure to meet you. I see my wife signaling to me across the room, so please excuse me."

Davis leaves the company of Hathaway and Athena to join his wife.

Hathaway tells Athena, "Davis is big business, big money. He made a donation of twenty million credits to the CFM last year. That pays the salaries of the entire writing staff many times over."

"He's likely a gunrunner too," Athena whispers back.

"Wouldn't surprise me," Hathaway says noncommittally.

The orchestra begins to play a tune, Johann Strauss' "Emperor Waltz."

"Care to dance?" Hathaway asks Athena.

Athena takes his hand with a smile, "But of course."

Not surprisingly, Hathaway finds that Athena is an excellent ballroom dancer, definitely well-trained and well-practiced. The couple searches into each other's eyes as they whirl gracefully across the dance floor.

"This is probably not how you spend most of your evenings," Hathaway remarks.

Athena replies, "Normally, at this time, I'm locked in my office filing mission reports."

"Such a shame," Hathaway sighs mockingly, "a lovely girl like you wasting her youth planning acts of mayhem and destruction."

"I don't know," Athena says, "it beats studying political science at Saint John's University."

The two laugh. The dancing continues long into the night.

At around 23:00, Hathaway and Athena have had enough of the dance party, even though the event shows no sign of winding down. Some of the well-heeled party guests have had a bit too much to drink, and have begun to behave rather rudely. In any case, they've had a good time, and don't want the evening to be ruined by some vomiting or cursing fellow guest.

Quite a bit of snow has fallen during the evening. Hathaway attempts to get on the main highway leading from the city to Whampoa Base, but finds that the regional road safety authorities have closed the roads for the next several hours until snowplows can get the roads cleared.

"Back to my place?" Hathaway suggests.

"Pretty soon, I'm going to have to get a mailing address there," Athena jokes.

Hathaway changes directions and heads for his apartment just a few kilometers away.

Athena pulls out her comlink from her handbag. She contacts Jolie, "Centurion Leader to Centurion Two. Please acknowledge."

Jolie's voice replies promptly, "Heya, 'Thena. What's up?"

"I'm going to be delayed coming back to base again," Athena says, "Weather's not cooperating again."

"This is getting to be a bad habit, Captain," Jolie teases from kilometers away.

"I know," Athena says, "You can file a disciplinary report on me in the morning if you want."

Athena can hear Jolie's laughter on the other end, "Don't tempt me. All right. I'll take care of the squad until you get back. Centurion Two out."

"Centurion Leader out."

"She's very loyal to you, isn't she?" Hathaway remarks.

"Jolie's the best," Athena agrees.

The GT-900 arrives at Hathaway's apartment. The couple quickly disappears inside.

For the second time in scarcely more than twenty-four hours, Athena finds herself shoeless in Hathaway's living room. She feels like she's only half kidding when she begins to consider offering to pay half the month's rent to Hathaway.

Hathaway returns to the living room from the kitchenette bearing a pot of hot, steaming tea and two cups. He finds Athena once again studying the two Cezanne paintings on the wall.

"You really like those, don't you?" Hathaway says, pouring the tea, "I'd give them to you, but then, I'd have nothing to left to decorate this place with. I'd have to get posters with girls in bikinis or someth…"

"Hathaway," Athena says seriously, "Level with me, will you? What is it you really do? Can you afford all of this with the salary of a CFM staff writer?"

Hathaway replies calmly, with a smile, "Doubting my credentials, eh? All right, I'll tell you this much: some of those wealthy folks we met back at the party tonight? Well, let's say I'm not beyond doing a little freelance work for them as well. But the work I do for them is strictly confidential, so I'm afraid I can't tell you much more."

Athena stands close to Hathaway, momentarily averting his gaze, then staring straight into his eyes, "Hathaway, I…"

"What is it?" Hathaway asks, suddenly concerned.

Athena is, for once, at a loss for how to proceed next. _Damn. This is harder than I thought it'd be._

"It's nothing," Athena says, "Nothing important."

"You can tell me," Hathaway says comfortingly, putting his arms gently around Athena, "Are you angry that I'm not being more open with you?"

"No," Athena says, "I'd be a hypocrite if I felt that. There are certain things that I'm not quite able to share with you either, Hathaway. I'm in your blind spot, in many ways."

"As long as you never put me into yours," Hathaway says, kissing Athena along the neck, "it doesn't matter to me."

Athena turns to face Hathaway. Their lips slowly come together and lock. This kiss is longer, deeper, and more passionate than the one they shared the previous evening.

The tea grows cold, as does the temperature outside the tiny apartment. Two bodies and two souls, however, emit warmth in winter.

02:39

Athena's lithe, unclothed form straddles Hathaway's similarly disrobed physique, her long, slender, silky smooth thighs astride Hathaway's pelvic region. Hathaway's fingers stroke the soft, smooth warmth of Athena's thighs, edging up towards the curve of her buttocks. Athena leans forward and down until her lovely face hangs so close to his that he can feel the warmth of her breath upon his lips. The perspiration of their two bodies mingles into a single saltine solution.

The space between their lips closes into a passionate kiss that seems to last a lifetime.

With Athena's negligible weight crouching upon him, Hathaway grins, "You always need to be on top of every situation, don't you?"

"It's how I've managed to stay alive this long," Athena says, kissing Hathaway again, "Never let the enemy gain the high ground."

"I'm your enemy now?" Hathaway grins, hands reaching up Athena's back to gently stroke her hair.

Athena leans her head upon Hathaway's chest, closing her eyes, "I wish it could have been different."

"What are you talking about?" asks Hathaway.

"Nothing…" Athena says, disengaging suddenly from Hathaway's warm embrace. She rises from the bed, and very methodically begins to dress her curvaceously naked form.

"I need to get back to the base," Athena says, all her warmth suddenly dissipated.

Hathaway stands and moves towards Athena, attempting to place comforting hands on her shoulders. Noticing the Centurion Team Leader's sudden change of mood, however, Hathaway thinks better of it.

"Let me get dressed," Hathaway says.

The ride to Whampoa Base is quiet and awkward. Several times, Hathaway attempts to engage Athena in light conversation, but Athena gently brushes his entreaties off. He finds Athena's sudden change of mood disturbing.

The GT-900 sports car arrives at the gate of Whampoa Base at 03:45.

"I…I hope you had a good time last night," Hathaway said.

Athena smiles weakly, "It was wonderful. You were wonderful. Thank you."

"Will I see you again?" Hathaway asks longingly.

"Yes," Athena chokes out, "Yes, you'll likely be seeing me again."

They kiss one last time. Both fear that somehow it truly is the last time.

It is 04:00 by the time Athena returns to the Centurion Team's temporary quarters. Were Athena a regular forces officer under normal circumstances, she would have been AWOL over eight hours ago. Special Forces officers, however, are extended certain privileges and courtesies…

Thirty minutes remain before reveille is to be called…just enough time for Athena to shower and get changed out of her _cheongsam_ and back into her uniform.

"Hey, 'Thena!"

Already a bunched bundle of nerves from the events of the previous evening, Athena is startled by Jolie's sudden appearance…so much so that Athena reflexively nearly strikes out at Jolie.

"Hey, easy," Jolie says, holding her hands up defensively.

Athena relaxes and puts down her fist.

"You're up early," Athena remarks, opening the door into her quarters. Jolie follows her in.

"Actually," Jolie confesses, "I've been up all night. I wasn't able to sleep thinking of how you were getting on with Hathaway."

Athena sits at the tiny bureau in the room she shares with her junior executive officer and begins removing her earrings, "You're an idiot sometimes, Jolie."

"Hey," Jolie protests, "It's only because I care. So…how far did you get with Hathaway? Is he going to ask you out again? What'd you guys do after the ball? Why were you out so long?"

_Here we go again,_ Athena thinks to herself tiredly.

Almost just to shut Jolie up, Athena tells her executive officer bluntly, "I had sex with him."

Athena's directness catches Jolie off-guard. She doesn't know what to say. Is Athena kidding?

"You…had…sex…with…him? On the very first date?!" Jolie says, incredulous.

"Yes, I did," Athena says in a dispassionate tone, almost as if she were telling Jolie that she had picked up the mail.

"Ohmigod! Ohmigod! Ohmigod!" Jolie blinks, unable to believe her ears.

"Jolie…" Athena says wearily.

"Ohmigod!" the excited teenager repeats, a delirious grin on her lovely young face, "I can't believe it! You! Had! Sex! With! Him! First! Date!"

Athena covers her eyes and shakes her head, already regretting being so direct with Jolie, "It's not what you think."

"Not what I think?" Jolie wonders, confused, "What do you mean?"

Athena sighs, "I've pretty much confirmed everything I suspected about Hathaway Noah. He's more than he lets on. I don't believe that he's just an independent investigative journalist looking into corruption in the Federal Forces. There's way more than that going on with him."

"So…you mean you're not in love with him?" Jolie asks, "You only had sex with him to get information out of him?!"

"Yes," Athena says, glad that Jolie finally understands.

Or not.

"What is the matter with you?!" Jolie explodes, "How can you have sex with a man if you don't love him?! And when you don't even know if he loves you?!"

"Jolie…" Athena repeats again, tiredly covering her face with both of her hands.

"Ohmigod!" Jolie rants, "Athena, I've always looked up to you as the classiest person I know. How the hell could you be such a cheap slut like that?!"

"JOLIE!" Athena shouts with a forceful rage that shuts Jolie up, the Centurion Team Leader's hands slender hands tense into tight fists.

There is an awkward silence for a moment. A tension as thick as a Minovsky particle field fills the room.

Jolie scowls at Athena in disgust for a moment, and then, with a contemptuous "Hmph!" for effect, turns on her heel and leaves the room…without asking her commanding officer for so much as dismissal.

"Damn!" Athena curses under her breath. Athena pulls out a cigarette from her purse and lights it…too early in the morning for a cigarette, really, but what the hell…

_Some things, even an IQ of 200 and a head full of military strategies can't prepare you for_, Athena reflects.

Sunday. The Security Council takes the day off from discussing the ISRLA and resurgent Neo Zeon problems. General Bright Noah will make use of his time this day to visit is wife, Mirai, and their daughter, Chieming, at their home in the suburbs some forty kilometers outside of Shanghai (in the direction opposite to that of Whampoa Base).

Jet fighter patrols fly over the path in the hours prior to the passing of the general's convoy. He will be escorted by security forces from Whampoa Base, including four GM-IV mobile suits.

Thus far, the reconnaissance forces have detected nothing unusual or threatening along the path. The convoy should be able to pass through at the appointed hour of 10:00.

Buried in the snow just off the main highway leading out of Shanghai into the suburbs is a white-painted RMS-106CS Hizack Sniper Custom. The mecha has been fitted with special stealth dampeners to make it undetectable to the Earth Federation Forces' conventional tracking technologies. Its armaments include a high-powered precision beam rifle with extra energy pack, a missile launcher pod (twelve missiles total), and a pack of four grenades to go with the standard beam saber and Heat Hawk setup. The mecha is armed to the teeth for both direct combat and stealth assassination. The MS's engine and thruster has been modified by Anaheim Enterprises' top engineers to deliver three times the thrust output of the standard Hizack. The mecha is strong enough to take on a Gundam-class mobile suit.

Inside the mobile suit's cockpit, Hathaway Noah, dressed in a Zeon-style normalsuit, waits patiently, helmet off. He smokes a cigarette, the mecha's internal filtration system removing the smoke from the tiny space.

He has waited for this day for five years.

Finally, he will avenge the memory of Quess Parayana on the most respected officer in the Earth Federation Forces…his own father, General Bright Noah.

07:00 Sunday morning. The Centurion Team is once again in the maintenance hangar, prepping their mobile suits for the morning's training session. This morning, they will be working on stealth maneuvers in cold-weather conditions.

Athena is hard at work inside the cockpit of the Cour de Leon, repairing some damage to the internal avionics control mechanism that was sustained during the previous day's training session.

Taking a break from maintenance work on her Centurion Gundam, Jolie approaches Athena, "Athe.., um. Captain?"

"Lieutenant," Athena replies mildly, without looking up from her work as she addresses her young charge.

"Captain," Jolie begins again, "I, um, I just wanted to say that I was sorry. About this morning, I mean. That was wrong of me. I shouldn't have called you a cheap slut. I…uh…"

Athena, soldering two loose components together, replies, "Forget it. I can understand how it must have looked to you."

Jolie says, "But how? I mean, how could you just…?"

Athena puts down her work. She places her hands on Jolie's shoulders, "Sometimes, you need to be willing to make sacrifices in light of the big goals. I promise you that I won't ask you or anyone under my command to make sacrifices on my account, but I'll make any personal sacrifice that I need to meet my objectives. You need to understand that."

Jolie doesn't think she'll ever understand, but that's not what she wants to know.

"Athena…are you in love with Hathaway Noah?"

Athena stares blankly at Jolie for a moment, trying to give her friend an answer that is neither dishonest nor inaccurate.

Ultimately not knowing what to say, Athena quietly continues working on the Cour de Leon.

"Athena…" Jolie presses.

Athena closes the cockpit hatch of the Cour De Leon so she can work in solitude.

Jolie frowns worriedly at the sealed cockpit of the Cour De Leon. Jolie senses that underneath Athena's steely exterior, the commanding officer of the Centurion Team is hurting.

At 09:40, Athena stands on the deck of the MS hangar, normalsuited and ready for the day's training session to continue after a short break.

An aide approaches and salutes Athena, "Captain Ibaz, ma'am. Update from HQ."

"Go ahead, Lieutenant," Athena says, suddenly worried.

"Ma'am, at 10:00, General Noah and a security convoy will be southbound on the main highway from the city. The general will be visiting his family, ma'am."

"Damn," Athena reacts with controlled alarm, "Why wasn't I informed of this sooner?"

The liaison officer replies, "The security staff believed that the general would be safer if…"

"Never mind," Athena says, putting on her helmet and running to board the Cour De Leon, "Sound general quarters, immediately! Put the base on yellow alert!"

Before waiting for the officer to reply, Athena opens the comlink to Jolie, "Centurion Leader to Centurion Two. Jolie. Do you hear me?"

Jolie replies, "Roger, ma'am. What's up?"

"Jolie," Athena says calmly, but tersely, "do you have Chieming Noah's home phone number?"

"Yeah," Jolie replies, a bit bewildered by why Athena would be asking for such a thing right now, "Why?"

"Call Chieming immediately," Athena says, "Get the Noah family's home address and scramble with the squad out there immediately. Training session is cancelled! We're on yellow alert!"

"Yellow alert?" Jolie says, "Would you mind telling me what's going on?"

"REPEAT THE ORDER!" Athena demands.

Jolie responds crisply, "Contact Chieming Noah. Find out Noah residence address and scramble with C-Team to that location."

"Do it now," Athena says, "and have the team secure the location when it gets there. Be on the look out for sniper units!"

"What about you?" Jolie asks.

Athena does not answer. The Cour De Leon is airborne in its Waverider Configuration, speeding at supersonic velocity towards the suburban highway south of the city of Shanghai.

Minutes later, General Bright Noah's convoy is passing through the forested area between the central city area of Shanghai and the suburban areas to the south. As to attract minimal attention, the road convoy consists only of General Noah's personal transport (an armored and reinforced SUV/van type vehicle) and a few military police vehicles. The real security flies overhead in FF-99X jet fighters and GM-IV mobile suits.

Nearby, Hathaway Noah's Hizack Sniper Custom crouches among the cover of tall conifer trees, ready to strike at its prey.

Hathaway's Hizack Custom has been painted in an all-white scheme in anticipation of this mission in the snowy lands of northern China during the winter months. Stenciled onto the Hizack's body, however, is a stylized black logo of the name "Mafty."

Mafty, Hathaway Noah, targets the four GM-IV mobile suits speeding in his general location at a distance of two kilometers. The handsome young CFM journalist and clandestine ISRLA operative thumbs the trigger on his mecha's control stick.

Four missiles launch forth from pods attached to the Hizack's legs, seeking their targets.

Three of the four missiles find their targets, scoring direct hits. The flaming wreckage of three GM-IVs plummet onto the snowy earth below.

General Noah's convoy comes to a stop.

"Red alert!" the convoy's security chief calls out over his radio, "Convoy B1 is under attack!"

The driver of General Noah's vehicle turns to face the general, who has stuck his head out of the vehicle's window to get a better look at what's happening.

"Sir," the driver says, "the convoy is under attack. We should turn around and return to the city."

Bright says nothing to that suggestion, instead telling the driver, "Give me the radio, Sergeant."

The driver duly complies. General Noah orders the troops, "Locate and neutralize the attacker! Try to take him alive, if possible! Also, dispatch a squad to provide security for my family!"

The voice of the security chief replies, "Yes, sir…a squad from Whampoa is already en rout to your home, sir."

"Already…?" Bright asks, "Who?"

The reply comes, "Centurion Team, sir. Captain Athena Ibaz's unit."

Bright cannot help but smile, _Quick thinking, Athena…as always._

The last of the GM-IVs is piloted by a veteran, Captain Li-Yao Huang, a Federal Forces mobile suit pilot since the One Year War. Picked to lead the security convoy's mobile suit escort squad due to his experience, Captain Huang has long been known as one of the best mobile suit pilots stationed at Whampoa Base.

For all the good it does him.

Captain Huang fires the beam rifle of his GM-IV into the forest where he is reasonably certain the three quick shots that so ruthlessly and efficiently destroyed the rest of his unit issued from. The beams hit nothing but snow-covered conifers, felling the trees and causing them to burn.

Captain Huang's concentration wavers momentarily as he finds himself dazzled by the flames of the small forest fire he has started. Suddenly, behind the cover of trees, a mobile suit grenade is lobbed forth, detonating near Huang's GM-IV. The concussion is not enough to destroy the Federation mobile suit, but is powerful enough to knock the mecha down. A follow up beam rifle strike, however, promptly annihilates Captain Huang and his mobile suit.

"So much for the escort squad," Hathaway Noah breathes, "Now for the actual objective."

Hathaway Noah targets his Hizack Sniper Custom's beam rifle at the sports utility vehicle in which is father, General Bright Noah, sits. Hathaway can make out the man's familiar silhouette through the window of the vehicle.

For a moment, Hathaway feels a tinge of regret. Hathaway remembers how, as a child, he adored and worshipped his father…how he celebrated his father's victories over what Hathaway then believed were the forces of evil, the Zeon and the Titans. He remembers playing with his father, learning reading and mathematics from him, joining him on fishing and camping expeditions, watching exciting movies with him at the cinema.

That was another lifetime…before he saw his father's true colors.

The Earth Federation Government was evil. Its military arm, the Earth Federation Forces, its primary tool of oppression. Hathaway will never forget how his first love, sixteen year old Quess Parayana, was killed by the Federal Forces officer Chan Agi. Quess had been misled and manipulated by the Neo Zeon leader Colonel Char Aznable to serve as his living weapon…pilot of the devastating mobile armor NZ-333 Alpha Azieru, but Hathaway had convinced the girl to surrender. Quess never got that second chance that she deserved, however, because Miss Chan had jumped the gun….literally. In a moment of rage and hate, Hathaway killed Chan in retaliation, and was later charged for the murder of a Federal Forces officer.

Hathaway was brutally beaten by Federal Forces MPs while he was jailed awaiting trial. It was in the jail that he saw the true face of the Earth Federation Forces.

And it was his father, his own father, who was subsequently promoted into the position of the Earth Federation's highest ranking military officer.

Bright Noah disowned his son; Hathaway decided then too, that he would disown his father and all his father stood for: the Earth Federation and its barbaric, backwards ways.

Hathaway's finger tenses around the trigger of the control stick. In another second, with another gesture, it would be over.

_Farewell, Father,_ Hathaway thinks, _May God have mercy on your soul._

The finger tenses further.

The crashing din of metal upon metal suddenly fills the Chinese wilderness. Something very large, very heavy slams into Mafty's Hizack Custom. The assassin mobile suit tumbles across the snow. In its cockpit, Hathaway Noah is thrashed violently, his life preserved only by the safety harnesses snapping into place.

The Hizack's automatic balance gyros bring the mecha back to its feet. The viewscreen/targeting monitor is working on identifying the interloper.

The computer is unable to find a match for the Federal Forces mecha now confronting him, but Hathaway recognizes it as the Cour De Leon.

Captain Athena Ibaz's mobile suit.

Above where Athena's Cour De Leon confronts Hathaway's Hizack Sniper Custom, the Centurion Team flies past, on its way to the Noah family home some ten kilometers to the south.

General Noah's convoy has turned back north towards the city of Shanghai. Further reinforcements are on the way from Whampoa Base and should be arriving in minutes.

Aboard the Hizack Sniper Custom, Hathaway Noah seethes angrily. His best opportunity to kill the man he has come to hate is slipping away.

With a quick, brutal move, the Hizack Sniper Custom kicks down the Cour De Leon standing in its way. As the Federal Forces' mecha goes down, however, it reaches out with one of its metalshod hands, grabbing the leg of the Hizack Sniper Custom and forcing it belly-first onto the snowy ground.

"Stop interfering, damn you!" Hathaway curses, as he levels the Hizack Sniper Custom's beam rifle at the Cour De Leon.

The Cour De Leon kicks the weapon out of the Hizack Sniper Custom's hand, then lays atop the enemy mecha, pinning it down. It is a bizarre, ironic, mirror of the tender moments that the pilots of the two mecha had shared scarcely eight hours earlier.

A memory comes unbidden into Athena's mind, as she recalls Hathaway's words of earlier that same morning, now seemingly a lifetime ago, _You always need to be on top of every situation, don't you?_

Hathaway, aboard the Hizack, experiences a similar flash of memory of Athena's response,_ It's how I've managed to survive this long. Never let the enemy gain the high ground._

_I'm your enemy now?_ Hathaway's question returns to haunt Athena.

Hathaway recalls the warmth of Athena's body in his arms as he held her gently, the softness of her voice, _I wish it could have been different._

Hathaway uses the powerful servomotors of the Hizack's fusion powered, armored legs to kick the Cour De Leon off and away from his mecha, simultaneously drawing out the Hizack's beam saber. Hathaway directs the Hizack in an aggressive charge directly at the Cour De Leon, the beam saber held menacingly in a strike position.

Dodging back from the kick and quickly regaining its balance and orientation through spurts of jet exhaust from its vernier thrusters, the Cour De Leon deftly draws out and ignites its own beam saber and brings it up to parry the incoming strike.

The Cour De Leon and Hizack duel with their beam sabers, exchanging a succession of quick, fluid slashes, counterslashes, parries, and jabs.

Athena whirls the Cour De Leon's beam saber snakelike around the length of the Hizack's energy blade. Sensing what Athena is trying to do, Hathaway counters by pulling back both the beam saber and the Hizack's body, breaking Athena's maneuver and lifting his mobile suit's weapon high for a downward strike upon the head of the Cour De Leon. Athena throws the Cour De Leon sideways, using her mobile suit's leg to trip the Hizack in the process. The Hizack rolls away, coming up with its beam saber held in a defensive stance just in time to block the Cour De Leon's next saber strike.

Images of the previous night's dance at the ball flash through Athena and Hathaway's minds and juxtapose with the current images of the battle. The legs of their two mobile suits shift rapidly and gracefully, as if this too were a dance. But whereas the previous evening's dance was characterized by tenderness and beauty, the "dance" now is defined by the savagery of battle.

Their parting words from the night before…no, just hours ago on this very same day, return to haunt Athena and Hathaway as their mobile suits continue to battle.

_  
"Will I see you again?" Hathaway asks longingly. _

"Yes," Athena chokes out, "Yes, you'll likely be seeing me again." 

In a desperate maneuver to end the battle quickly, Athena raises the beam saber of the Cour De Leon for what appears to be a lethal final strike on the Hizack Sniper Custom. Hathaway raises his mecha's own beam saber to parry.

But Athena's move is simply a feint. Instead of striking down on the main body of the Hizack with the Cour De Leon's beam saber, Athena raises the empty hand of her mobile suit and presses its armored palm against the monoeye of the Hizack, momentarily blinding the enemy mobile suit.

Taking advantage of Hathaway's momentary disorientation, Athena knocks the Hizack's beam saber from its armored hand, then engages the Cour De Leon's thrusters to deliver a devastating elbow-first collision into the Hizack. Hathaway's mecha is knocked flat on its back, completely at Athena's mercy. The Cour De Leon trains its beam rifle upon the prostrate Hizack.

But the Cour De Leon hesitates, as if its pilot is unwilling to take the battle further. Sensing this, and knowing that his true quarry is now out of range, Hathaway makes the decision to complete his mission some other day.

_You win this round, Athena…we'll meet again._ Hathaway thinks to himself, lobbing blinder grenades to cover his escape.

There is a flash of brilliant light, and clouds of steam and smoke that persist for a long minute. When the light and smoke clears, the white Hizack of Mafty is nowhere to be seen.

Athena opens the visor of her helmet. The frown on her young, pretty face tells the story: the battle has resolved nothing.

Her troubles are only beginning.


	8. Chapter 8: WHITE WOLF

EPISODE 8: WHITE WOLF

The bitter cold of Northern Siberia's wind-swept snows lashes across a desolate landscape all but devoid of life. Few environments on planet Earth could be less receptive to the development of life, and only the hardiest of specimens can possibly take root here.

The region is remote from the conclaves of civilized humanity. No human habitation of any significant size lies within a thousand kilometers in any direction. The region is as desolate as the surface of the moon had once been before the lunar cities of Von Braun and Anman were established around a century ago.

This very remoteness, however, makes the area an ideal venue for the Earth Federation Forces to establish its Aurora Communications Base…a vital link in its satellite communications network between Earth and the various space colonies.

Against the advice of communications technology experts and plain common sense, the Earth Federation Forces have concentrated a great amount of their Earth-to-Space communications relay at this site. Even many laypeople would observe that the Federal Forces are fools to do so: all it would take is one successful strike against the base to cripple the Federal Forces' ability to communicate with its garrisons in the space colonies. Should Aurora, built in the years immediately after the One Year War, be compromised, communication between Earth and the cosmos would effectively be slowed to a trickle for weeks…and full communications would take months to reestablish.

The Earth Federation Government reasons, however, that it would be more economic to concentrate its space communications relay in a single location rather than distribute it to stations around the globe. The latter arrangement, while making much more sense to communications planners and military experts alike, would require the more costly posting of defense forces to protect multiple targets around the world. The Federation Government, never keen to spend more of its budget on the military than it absolutely needs to, has opted for the strategically risky, but less expensive option of a concentrated communications relay station guarded by a single, fortified base.

For eighteen years, Aurora Communications Base has escaped capture or destruction by enemy forces. The forces of the First Neo Zeon Empire nearly captured the base during its invasion and occupation of Earth in U.C. 0088, but were successfully repelled from the base by a combined Federation/Karaba (the Earth-based division of A.E.U.G.) defense squad led by Captain Amuro Ray.

But a rich, fat target such as Aurora cannot hope to remain untouched forever. The gods of sensibility must surely be offended by the presence of such an unwisely planned enterprise, and must surely someday unleash their wrath upon such absurdity.

That day has come.

He was the son of a hard-drinking, failed professional boxer turned spaceship-builder in Side 3. Born in U.C. 0055 in Zum City, Shin Matsunaga came of age during the Great Spacenoid Revolution led by Zeon Zum Daikun during the U.C. 0060s. He remembers the day when, as a high school student, he and his fellow students wept in despair as they heard the news about Prime Minister Daikun's untimely and unexpected death in U.C. 0069. He remembers the great pride and nationalism that swelled in his then-young heart as the new Prime Minister, Degin Zabi, swore solemnly that Zeon Daikun's dream of Spacenoid independence from the corrupt Earth Federation Government would not die with the former Prime Minister. Matsunaga also remembers the awe he and his peers experienced as they saw how, under Archduke Degin Zabi (who had quickly abandoned Zeon Daikun's republican form of government and reorganized the Zeon Republic as the Archduchy of Zeon) and Prince Giren Zabi, the Army of Zeon quickly grew from a small, limited defensive army into a mighty military juggernaut…the greatest military power ever organized by humanity.

In U.C. 0071, sixteen year old Shin Matsunaga enrolled alongside hundreds of thousands of other Zeon-born youths in the Royal Military Academy of the Archduchy of Zeon. A warrior by nature whose aggressive instincts had been fueled by frequent beatings at the hands of his alcoholic, former prizefighter father, Shin had always been tougher than unprocessed cattle hide. His combative temperaments served him well at the academy, and Matsunaga won fame at the academy as one of the deadliest, most efficient cadets ever to graduate from the academy…especially in the operation of the new, anthropomorphic war machines that were known as mobile suits.

Matsunaga graduated from the Royal Military Academy in U.C. 0074 at the top of his class. During the following year, he became a combat instructor at the academy, and among the pupils he trained in the art of piloting mobile suits into combat were Prince Garma Zabi, youngest of Archduke Degin Zabi's four children, and Char Aznable, the man who would one day become infamous as the "Red Comet."

In U.C. 0075, Matsunaga became acquainted with Prince Dozle Zabi, Archduke Degin's third son. Every bit as much a natural born warrior as Matsunaga, Prince Dozle soon found himself taking a great liking to this gifted young mobile suit pilot. The two became good friends, each admiring the other's limitless courage and aggressiveness on the battlefield, and Prince Dozle made sure that 1Lt. Shin Matsunaga was assigned directly under his command. So impressed was Prince Dozle by Matsunaga's prowess with a mobile suit that in U.C. 0077, Dozle appointed Matsunaga his personal bodyguard.

Having gained Prince Dozle's favor, Matsunaga lived like a prince himself during the next several heady years. Raised in poverty, Matsunaga enjoyed wealth and luxury that he had never imagined could be his. The prince ordered the construction of a luxurious manor for Matsunaga in Zum City, located not far from the Royal Gardens. A handsome man during his youth, with a rough-edged charm, Matsunaga enjoyed the company of beautiful women during these years. Many women of Zeon longed for the opportunity to be seen on the arm of one of Zeon's most celebrated military heroes.

Neither Prince Dozle nor his siblings ever begrudged indulging Matsunaga with accolades and luxury. In their eyes, it was money well spent…for they had a loyal warrior who constantly and fervently brought terror and destruction to the Earth Federation Forces.

During the One Year War, Captain Shin Matsunaga of the Archduchy of Zeon was known to favor white mobile suits. In his Japanese heritage, white was the color of death…the color of mourning. Matsunaga wanted his enemies to know that when they laid eyes upon his white-colored mobile suit, they laid eyes upon the harbinger of death. In that year of devastating war, many, many Federal Forces mobile suit pilots died with the white armor of Matsunaga's mobile suit filling their horror-stricken eyes. By war's end, Matsunaga had compiled the third most kills among mobile suit pilots in the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon. Many believe that if not for a wound he sustained mid-war protecting his liege Prince Dozle from an assassination attempt by treacherous soldiers under the prince's command - a wound that sidelined Matsunaga from the battlefield for three months - he would have been the Zeon's top ace of the One Year War. Matsunaga lost his left eye in that battle…a wound many at the time judged would prove to be the end of Matsunaga's career as a mobile suit pilot. Piloting mobile suits in space combat required the sharpest of senses. How could a mobile suit pilot be effective with only one eye to see?

But the many were wrong. When Matsunaga returned to the battlefield three months after his injury, his skills as a mobile suit pilot had become greater than ever before, because in the intervening months, his Newtype potential had blossomed to compensate for his missing eye. Once, Matsunaga had two eyes. Now, it was almost as if he had a dozen of them around his head. Federal Forces mobile suit pilots who had hoped they had seen the end of Matsunaga learned to their dismay that their enemy had become deadlier than ever.

Matsunaga's style of mobile suit combat was different from that of most others. Whereas most mobile suit pilots favored using long-range weaponry such as beam rifles, machine guns, bazookas, grenade launchers, and missiles, going to close-in weaponry such as beam sabers and Heat Hawks only when there was no other option, Matsunaga favored and was a specialist in close-combat maneuvers. His favorite tactic was to use his mobile suit's specially modified thrusters (which, under Matsunaga's orders, were often given up to four times a standard mobile suit's output capacity) to draw himself close alongside an enemy mobile suit, where the enemy's long range cannon could not effectively be trained upon him. Matsunaga would then use his mobile suit's Heat Hawk (and later in the war, after he had been assigned an MS-14S Officer's Gelgoog to replace his MS-06S Officer's Zaku and MS-R09S Officer's Rick Dom, a beam naginata) to carve the enemy to shards…a brutal tactic that Matsunaga took great pleasure in.

For his brutal, deadly tactics, his cold efficiency, and for the color of his mobile suit, Matsunaga became famous (or infamous) as Haruko, the White Wolf…the Wolf of the North who descended upon his enemies as if they were so many fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered.

Before Prince Dozle Zabi went to fight what turned out to be his last battle, the Battle of Solomon, he had instructed Captain Shin Matsunaga to protect his wife, Lady Cenna Zabi and their newborn daughter, Princess Minerva Zabi, with his life. More than anything, Captain Matsunaga wanted to join his lord and best friend in battle against the Federation scum who were so close to invading their homeland of Zeon. But Matsunaga knew that should his lord fall in battle, and should the Federation penetrate Solomon, Granada, and A Bao A Qu and take Zeon itself, Princess Minerva would be the hope upon which the people of Zeon would look for their eventual day of revival. Moreover, the prince had given Matsunaga the privilege of becoming Princess Minerva's godfather, an honor for which Matsunaga was always grateful.

Prince Dozle Zabi was killed in December, U.C. 0079 when his MA-08 Byg Zam mobile armor was destroyed by the Earth Federation Forces' RX-78 Gundam mobile suit piloted by a young Newtype from Side 7 named 2Lt. Amuro Ray. When Matsunaga received word of Dozle's death, he wept like a child, and swore that someday, he would carve Amuro Ray and the Gundam to pieces and drop those pieces on the leaders of the Earth Federation Government.

The One Year War came to an end before Matsunaga had that opportunity. Like most of the surviving Zeon Forces, Matsunaga fled to the safety of the Asteroid Belt, where at the asteroid fortress Axis, the Zeon would gradually rebuild their strength over the next seven years. Admiral Makajara Khan, who had become the highest ranking surviving officer of the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon upon the death of Princess/Admiral Kycilia Zabi, took primary responsibility for rebuilding the Zeon forces and caring for surviving Zeon monarch, Princess Minerva Zabi. Admiral Khan promoted Matsunaga to the rank of Colonel for his valor during the war.

During these relatively quiet years, Matsunaga was often a visitor to the Royal Palace constructed in Axis Fortress. After Lady Cenna's death from illness two years after her husband's death, Matsunaga often came to comfort and play with the little princess, Minerva. Princess Minerva grew quite affectionate towards her "Uncle Shin," and Matsunaga developed great fondness for the child himself…the beautiful daughter of his former lord and best friend.

Colonel Shin Matsunaga was once again deployed to the front lines when the Army of the Axis Neo Zeon invaded Earth in U.C. 0088. Determined to make good on his vow of vengeance for Prince Dozle Zabi, Matsunaga requested and received an assignment to occupied Earth from Lady Haman Khan (who had become nominal leader of the Neo Zeon forces after her father's death in U.C. 0085). His assignment was to further demoralize the already exhausted and besieged Earth Federation/A.E.U.G. Alliance by killing one of its greatest heroes and top mobile suit aces, Captain Amuro Ray.

The White Wolf and his squadron finally located and confronted Captain Amuro's Karaba squadron in the skies over California on Earth. The Karaba mobile suit squadron under Captain Amuro's command had orders from the Federation/A.E.U.G. high command to attempt to liberate California Hickory Base from Neo Zeon control. There, the White Wolf awaited them.

After a long, savage battle, Amuro in his Zeta-Plus mobile suit defeated the White Wolf, destroying the Zeon ace's customized Officer's Regelg mobile suit. Matsunaga survived the battle, but had suffered his first-ever (and to date, only) defeat – to the man he hated more than any other. Taken a prisoner of war by the Federation/A.E.U.G., Matsunaga became a broken, bitter man in Federal prison by the time the war ended several months later. In U.C. 0093, following negotiations between the Earth Federation Government and Matsunaga's one-time academy pupil Char Aznable, who had become the new Neo Zeon leader, Matsunaga was released along with many other prisoners of war from Federal prison.

Without an Archduchy of Zeon to serve, Matsunaga soon found himself without a purpose. In U.C. 0093, the year of the last great Neo Zeon uprising, Matsunaga was thirty-eight years old. He had known great triumph, glory, and wealth, but what did he have to show for it now? The Archduchy of Zeon had been reduced to a rabble of squabbling fiefdoms in the Outer Solar System. Colonel Char Aznable was dead. Duchess Minerva Zabi was missing. Even Matsunaga's great enemy, Captain Amuro Ray of the Earth Federation Forces, had perished. Even revenge had ceased to be a purpose to live.

For six months, Matsunaga drifted aimlessly on Earth…drinking heavily and reminiscing about past glories. But those whose lives are defined by war had not forgotten him. The legend of the White Wolf had endured.

It was in early U.C. 0094 that Matsunaga was located and contacted by an anti-Federation corporate entity that wanted a Federal Forces' installation eliminated (most likely so that it could profit from the contract the Federation would offer to rebuild it). For the first time in six years, the White Wolf terrorized the Earth Federation Forces again…and he was as dangerous as ever. Not age, not the long period of inactivity, and not even his mounting alcoholism had dulled Matsunaga's deadly skills. The installation and the twenty-five mobile suits that guarded it were handily destroyed within a half hour's time. The White Wolf had returned, this time as a soldier of fortune…a fierce and deadly efficient warrior willing to kill for anyone who could afford to pay his luxuriant fees.

For the past four years, the White Wolf has continued to menace the Federal Forces' assorted bases and installations on Earth…a constant thorn in the Federation's side and one that the Federation seemingly cannot eliminate. Among the last veterans of the One Year War, the White Wolf is still killing Federal Forces mobile suit pilots who were not even born when Shin Matsunaga first gained fame and notoriety.

"The White Wolf of the North has come," Matsunaga liked to announce to his enemies before he slew them, "and you are all but sheep to be slaughtered before me."

November, U.C. 0098 would go down as one of the coldest Novembers on record, with snow reaching even the lower latitudes. Hence, the typically bitter climate of Northern Siberia is even worse than usual.

"Man," Cpl. Lance Bowman of the Earth Federation Forces' Aurora Base Mobile Suit Squadron 94 says, blowing his breath into his gloved hands, "I hope that my next reassignment is going to be to Hawaii Base or somewhere like that."

Sergeant Ivan Nagayev, Bowman's commanding NCO, chuckles, "Dream on. With your record, you ought to count your blessings that they don't put you in front of a firing squad."

Bowman says, "The worst thing about this place is the boredom. Nothing ever happens up here!"

Nagayev replies, "Yeah, you're right about that. It's too bad that I wasn't even able to pass the preliminaries in Special Forces training. I could've been styling with the elites up in Garrison Noah at Side 7."

Bowman smiles, "You mean where all the babes are?"

Nagayev says, "All the hot chicks are in the Special Forces. There's that Athena Ibaz, and that Jolie Minh…you know, the 'White Phoenix'?"

"Yeah," Bowman breathes, his pulse running a little quicker at the mention of the two names, "Saw those two girls on the news reports about that action with the _Moonshadow_ last month. They are hot, hot, hot! If they came up here, they'd probably melt all this snow!"

Nagayev says, "In your fantasies! They're Special Forces elites. We're grunts stuck in the boonies. We're not worthy enough to wipe their asses after they shit."

"Now that's an image I won't be able to get out of my head," Bowman replies to his commander's tasteless joke.

The two laugh. Suddenly, however, Bowman's laughter falls silent.

Nagayev notices the sudden silence. Thinking it might be a problem with his helmet communications set, Nagayev does a test check. All channels are clear. It must be something on Bowman's end.

Nagayev attempts to radio his other subordinates, "Private Watamba? Private McEnery? Private Zhang? Any of you guys hear me?"

Zhang replies, "Over here, Sarge."

Nagayev asks, "Where's the rest of the squad?"

Zhang replies, "Don't know, sir. They've been dropping out of contact one-by-one during the past six minutes or so."

Nagayev grows nervous, "It could be radio trouble. Anyway, be alert. Something strange is going on around here."

"Yes, s…" Zhang's reply disappears in static.

"Zhang? Wata? Mac? Bowman?" Nagayev calls into his helmet comlink, "Where the hell are you guys?

Nagayev never sees the massive form of the white Officer's Regelg that suddenly appears behind his GM-IV Cold Weather Type.

Nagayev barely glimpses the beam saber that appears from behind his mobile suit to stab straight through its cockpit, melting his body like butter in the flame of a blowtorch.

Nagayev is but a memory as the Regelg hacks what remains of his disabled mobile suit into obscenely neat piles of scrap metal.

Nagayev is but the latest…the last of a scene that has already been repeated a dozen times here today.

With no more mobile suits to descend upon and eliminate, the white Officer's Regelg extracts a high-powered grenade from its backpack storage nacelle, and tosses it at the Aurora Communication Base's main transceiver tower.

A brilliant explosion, followed by silence across the Federation's satellite communications network. Federal Forces communications techs around the planet and across the space colonies are thrown into sudden confusion and panic.

Aboard the Regelg, Colonel Shin Matsunaga takes a swig from his flask of whiskey, then says, "The White Wolf of the North has come hunting…and all of you are but sheep before me."

Two hours later, Matsunaga's Regelg is being loaded aboard a Gaw mobile suit transport aircraft. The massive carrier plane, once manufactured and deployed _en masse_ by the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon, dates to the One Year War. Years ago, Prince Garma Zabi had met his end at the controls of a Gaw aircraft in combat against the Federal Forces' famous _White Base_ commanded by then Captain Bright Noah.

"It's an honor to finally meet you, Colonel Matsunaga," says the commander of the Gaw, "your reputation precedes you."

The commander of the Gaw is the same shadowy individual who had supplied Hathaway Noah with the RMS-106CS Hizack Sniper Custom outside Shanghai several days earlier.

Matsunaga does not return the pleasantry. In his eyes, this tool is worth no such honor.

"Aurora Base is a smoking ruin," Matsunaga says matter-of-factly, "I expect to be paid the remaining balance for that job in a timely manner."

The other man nods and grins encouragingly, "Already wired into your Swiss bank account, Colonel…two million credits, directly from the ISR treasury by way of Anaheim Enterprises' fiscal department."

"Leave that to the bean counters to figure out," Matsunaga says, taking another swig from his flask of whiskey, "So we're ready to take off for Shanghai?"

The other man replies, "As soon as your mobile suit is secured, Colonel, yes. This next job is a big one you know…"

"Five million credits," Matsunaga acknowledges, "two Feddie generals dead. Sounds like an easy way to make some serious cash fast."

"You'll be working in conjunction with Mafty," the other man tells him, "With you two working together, we cannot fail."

"That kid?" Matsunaga sneers in contempt, "I've eaten pilots like him for breakfast since I was in my teens, and I turned forty-three last July!"

"Congratulations, Colonel," the other man replies with a respectful bow, "You must have the blessing of God to have been able to survive all those many battles."

_Blessing?_ Matsunaga contemplates, _Hah! More like curse! All these victories…all these battles, one after another. What have they all meant? Are they all my life has amounted to? For nearly thirty years, the better part of my life, I've slaughtered men in mobile suits as if they were sheep. When will I ever find real prey whose flesh would really be worth sinking my teeth into?_

Matsunaga takes another swig from his flask of whiskey, draining it.

Sighing, the aging mobile suit ace boards the Gaw along with the aircraft's mysterious commander.

As they enter the giant transport craft's spacious cockpit/bridge, the Gaw commander says to Matsunaga, "We've been studying Whampoa Base's defenses for two years now, and we've found several vulnerable points that you and Mafty can exploit. What does throw some of our intelligence off, however, is the presence of Special Forces units at Whampoa that are not usually stationed there. You want to pay particular attention to the Centurion Team…"

"Centurions?" Matsunaga suddenly becomes alert at the mention of the name, "Don't they have that girl pilot…Joey Meng, or something?"

"Jolie Minh," the other man corrects, "called the White Phoenix. She's been a thorn in our side during the past year…a mobile suit piloting prodigy of incredible talent."

Matsunaga smiles, "I'll carve her like a chicken."

"That's what we're hoping, Colonel," the other man replies, "Your job lies primarily in eliminating the White Phoenix. Mafty will take care of the rest."

"As long as I get paid," Matsunaga shrugs, trying to get another sip out of his whisky flask, and throwing it across the cockpit/bridge of the Gaw when he realizes it has not a drop left to give, "this might make for a good challenge."

The Gaw flies southward. Its destination: Shanghai, China.

Monday afternoon in Shanghai. Another cold, dreary pre-winter's day. No snow today, however.

At 16:00, Captain Athena Ibaz emerges from the Earth Federation Government Deliberative Assembly building in downtown Shanghai. She has just come out from an eight-hour meeting with Generals Bright Noah and Manron Blackhead and the Earth Federation Government Security Council. During the meeting, the military officers and political leaders have worked out plans for both military and public relations responses to the increasing aggression of ISRLA terrorists.

Athena spots Hathaway Noah across the wide boulevard, leaning roguishly on the hood of his red GT-900 sports car. Hathaway smiles as he spots Athena.

Athena does not return the smile. Looking away, she heads in the direction where her military land rover is parked in a nearby parking lot.

"Hey," Hathaway calls, dodging traffic as he deftly crosses the busy boulevard (much to the consternation of cursing drivers), "are you going to just ignore me like that?"

Athena continues walking, saying nothing to Hathaway. Not even turning to look at him.

Hathaway finally overtakes Athena, standing in her path, "Come on, Athena. Don't be this way. Did I do something to make you upset? Tell me, Athena, please."

Athena shoots Hathaway a hostile glare, "Drop the charade, Hathaway. We both know what the reality of the situation is."

Hathaway becomes serious, knowing that it is futile to attempt to deceive Athena, "How long have you known?"

Athena replies, "I knew it from the beginning. It became clear almost right away. Your job with the CFM. Those Cezanne paintings that I know are real, and that I also know you can't possibly afford. Those are going to pay for the Hizack and its weapons, aren't they…**Mafty**?"

"If you knew," Hathaway ventures, "Why didn't you come with an army of Federal Forces MPs to bust me? Capturing Mafty would have guaranteed you a fast track to promotion, _Captain Ibaz._"

Athena sighs, taking a moment to gather herself before replying, "Because I couldn't bear the thought of making you a prisoner of war…possibly even the victim of a firing squad."

Hathaway's expression softens. He approaches Athena, and cups her delicately beautiful chin in his soft, gentle hands. Hathaway lifts Athena's mouth close to his for a long kiss.

The couple embraces. Athena leans her head on Hathaway's shoulder, "Hathaway, please…quit your activities as Mafty now, before you get yourself killed. I spared you once, but I can't promise that I'll do it again. I am a Federal Forces officer, and I have my duty to perform."

Hathaway disengages from the warm embrace, holding Athena at arm's length, "You'd really kill me?"

Athena's eyes shimmer with tears she does not let fall as she replies, "I would have to, as much as I don't want to."

Hathaway takes Athena into his arms again and sighs, "I have to kill Bright Noah, Athena. I just have to. For my peace of mind, I have to."

Now it's Athena's turn to disengage from the embrace, "I know it's not because of the ISRLA, Hathaway. You aren't that committed to their cause. Jolie's talked to Chieming. It's about that girl Quess that you were once in love with, isn't it?"

Hathaway looks away.

Athena continues, "It wasn't General Noah's fault, Hathaway. He's a good man, and you know that. War is madness, and all who participate are both victimizers and victims. I beg you: don't let the madness continue. Walk away from it while you still can."

"Athena…" Hathaway says, turning to face her, his voice cracking.

Hathaway looks at Athena, gathers himself, and begins again, "The ghost of Quess has haunted my dreams for years. I thought I'd never forget about her. But now that I've met you…"

He reaches out, gently feeling the warm smoothness of Athena's cheek affectionately.

"Will you give up this mad quest for revenge?" Athena whispers, "If you can, maybe there's still a chance…for us."

Hathaway pulls his hand away from Athena's cheek. It closes into a fist.

"I'm sorry," he says, walking away…crossing the street, boarding his sports car, and speeding away.

"I'm sorry too," Athena whispers, heading once again towards her own vehicle for the drive back to Whampoa Base.

At Whampoa Base, 2Lt. Jolie Minh is taking advantage of the pre-dinner downtime to chat on the phone with her new friend, Chieming Noah.

"They actually had sex," Jolie repeats to Chieming for what must have been the tenth time, "Can you believe it?"

Chieming replies, "It's not so hard to believe for Hathaway. Remember: he's my brother. I know him. But Athena, wow…"

"I was so shocked I actually called her a cheap slut," Jolie confesses, "I really didn't see that coming."

"It's not that surprising, though," Chieming says, "If the world wasn't such a messed-up place today, Athena would probably be married already. You know: I think it'd be kind of cool to have Athena as a sister-in-law."

Jolie grins in amusement, "Wouldn't you rather have me, though?"

"I thought you weren't interested in my brother," Chieming replies.

"Kidding," Jolie says, "Like I said, he's definitely a hunk, but just not my type."

"Then just what is your type?" Chieming asks, her smile evident even across the telephone airwaves.

"I'll let you know when I meet him," Jolie replies.

"Anyway," Chieming begins, "Let's see if…"

"Hey, gotta hang up," Jolie says rapidly, "'Thena's coming. Talk to you later!"

Jolie quickly closes the line.

"Hey, there 'Thena!" Jolie salutes brightly as her friend and commanding officer approaches.

Athena returns the salute crisply, but says nothing.

"You're cheery today," Jolie says sarcastically.

"Not now, Jolie," Athena warns her young protégé.

Changing the subject to something that Athena would likely be more willing to talk about, Jolie says, "We're going to finally be going back to Side 7 in two days!"

Athena replies, "Yes, and because of that, we need to make preparations. The High Command is anticipating the ISRLA will probably try one last strike against the generals before they return to space. We need to be on guard."

"Yes, ma'am," replies Jolie.

"There's an important assignment awaiting for us after we return to Garrison Noah," Athena tells Jolie, "We're going to be deployed to Side 3 to take a more direct approach to dealing with the ISRLA."

That does not interest Jolie at the moment. What she wants to know is, "Athena…what you told me last night. Is Hathaway really Mafty?"

Athena sighs and nods.

"So what are you going to do?" Jolie asks.

Athena says calmly, "My duty."

Jolie's eyes widen, "But 'Thena…"

"I'm an officer of the Earth Federation Forces," Athena says resolutely, "and so are you. We have our duty to perform. It's that simple."

Jolie says nothing, but she looks at her friend sympathetically. Jolie doesn't need to use her Newtype powers to sense that deep inside, Athena's heart is breaking.

Jolie only wishes she knew what she can do to help her friend, but how can she when her friend seems to be in denial of her own feelings?

Hathaway Noah sits alone and dejected at a bar in downtown Shanghai, attempting to find a resolution to his deepening problems through the haze of tobacco smoke and glasses of whiskey. The chemicals, however, only salve his troubles as much as a bandage would salve a hemorrhage.

The face and words of the beautiful Athena Ibaz return to haunt Hathaway again and again, _Give up this mad quest of revenge…there's still a chance for us._

Hathaway admits that Athena's entreaties are extremely tempting. A part of him would like nothing more than to leave the conflict and violence of the war behind forever, to be together with Athena somewhere where they could live in peace…perhaps even start a family together.

But to do so would dishonor the memory of Quess. With Athena's emergence in his life, Hathaway has begun to realize that perhaps he's not in love with Quess anymore…that maybe he never was. For goodness' sake, he was only thirteen at the time. How far could he understand what love was? He remembers Quess as flighty, fractious, and ultimately, a bit selfish. She fascinated him at the time, but seen from his current perspective, Hathaway has to admit that Quess was quite immature…probably even less mature than Athena's friend Jolie.

Athena, however, is very different…at nineteen, already a grown woman with her own ideas and principles. It was Athena's physical beauty that first caught Hathaway's attention, but it is the strength of her personality and her mind that has truly caused him to fall in love with her. He loves her commitment to her beliefs and her goals. He loves the courage and intelligence with which she fights to pursue them. He loves the way she exerts the force of her personality upon her world…and how she gives of herself for those who matter most to her. That is the woman that Hathaway has fallen in love with, and increasingly feels he cannot live without.

That leaves him with a dilemma: what will he do when she inevitably will stand in the way of the goal that the ghost of Quess compels him to complete?

_Quess…Athena…Quess…Athena…,_ Hathaway revolves, _Is it the dead or the living that matters more to me?_

Hathaway shakes his head in confusion as he puts out his exhausted cigarette, his fifth of the hour. He takes a drink from a glass of scotch, his third of the hour.

A powerfully-built, bearded man in his forties walks into the bar. He is wearing an elegant black pinstriped suit complete with a hat. Over his right eye is a black eyepatch, underneath which runs a long, ugly scar. Hathaway regards the man, who looks like a gangster from those old 20th Century gangster movies.

The one-eyed man seats himself on a barstool next to Hathaway. He says, "Siberian winds are blowing,"

Hathaway orders a drink for the man, then replies, "Stirring men and wolves alike."

"So you're Mafty," Shin Matsunaga says, wolfish grin in place.

Hathaway nods, "Hathaway Noah, to those who know me best."

"Bright Noah's son?" Matsunaga asks, surprised, then adds with a laugh, "Crazy world. Never know who you'll end up fighting against or alongside anymore."

"Colonel Matsunaga," Hathaway says, "our contact has no doubt already briefed you on our objective?"

The bartender brings Matsunaga his drink, which the large man takes with relish, "Your objective is to blow the bejesus out of Whampoa Base before the Feddies can use it to send two of their top officers back into space. Mine is to get the White Phoenix and the Centurions off your back so you can do that."

Hathaway nods, "I'll be depending on you."

"Doesn't it bother you," Matsunaga asks, rubbing the eyepatch behind which there lies but an empty socket where an eye had once been, "That you're going to be killing your own father?"

Hathaway smirks, "Less than you'd imagine."

Matsunaga nods with understanding, "I hated my old man too. There were times I wanted to kill him too."

Not keen on comparing notes on paternal conflicts with a stranger, Hathaway changes the subject, "There's a hefty reward waiting after the completion of this objective."

Matsunaga replies, "Looking forward to it…but I look forward to the job itself even more. Haven't had a real challenge in years. It's been more like sheep-slaughtering than combat for years. I miss the thrill."

"Life outside the military has been killing you, hasn't it?" Hathaway observes.

"Some of us just weren't meant to live as civilians," Matsunaga says bitterly, ordering a second drink for himself, as well as a fourth one for Hathaway, "Still, 'soldier of fortune' isn't so bad a line of work. It gives even more perks as the real army does. Ain't quite as exciting as real combat, though. I just kill them by numbers these days."

"Do me a favor," Hathaway says upon hearing that, "I don't care what happens with the other enemy units, but if you see a Cour De Leon out there tomorrow, leave it to me."

"Oh?" Matsunaga says, "Got a vendetta to settle?"

Hathaway says, "Not exactly. Just let me deal with her."

"Her, eh?" Matsunaga responds with a grin, "Fallen for someone on the other side, Mafty?"

"That's none of your business, Colonel," Hathaway says in response.

"Suppose not," Matsunaga says, putting down his drink, "but I'll go with it as long as your Cour De Leon pilot doesn't put herself in a position where I won't have a choice but carve her to scrap."

Matsunaga and Hathaway both attempt to pay for the drinks, but Hathaway prevails. 

Matsunaga tips his hat to Hathaway and prepares to leave the bar for his hotel.

Before he leaves, Matsunaga has one last question for Hathaway, "By the way, what ever gave you the idea to call yourself 'Mafty' anyway? What the hell is a 'mafty'?"

Hathaway shrugs noncommittally, "Nothing in particular. Just a whim…a flash of inspiration."

Matsunaga shakes his head and mutters to himself, "Flash of inspiration…"

After the colonel leaves, Hathaway is left once again with his thoughts of Athena.

The following morning, the Centurion Team is once again in the hangar bay performing maintenance checks on their mobile suits. Captain Athena Ibaz allows nothing to fall to chance, particularly not the condition of their war machines. Although Captain Anh Lu's crack team of engineers and technicians have already given the Centurion Team's mobile suits a thorough maintenance routine, Athena insists that the team personally ensure the condition of their mecha.

Athena has an access panel near the chest ventilation nozzle of her Cour De Leon open. A component is loose…perhaps shaken loose during the skirmish against Mafty the other day. Somehow, Captain Lu's techs had missed it, or perhaps hadn't gotten around to it.

Athena takes a welding burner and sets about the job herself.

As Athena performs her maintenance work, troubling thoughts come unbidden into her mind.

_Will Hathaway listen to me?_ Athena wonders, _Will he really back off and give up his quest to kill General Noah? If he doesn't, will I be able to do what my duty requires me to do?_

Lost in thought, Athena fails to notice the welding burner slipping in her grasp. The flame scalds her gloved fingers, causing her to drop the burner and let out a pained yelp.

"Ow!" Athena complains, shaking her slightly singed fingers.

Athena's yelp brings Jolie, who has been working on maintaining her Centurion Gundam on the adjacent dock, running over.

"Hey, you OK?" Jolie asks.

"Yeah," Athena says, angry at herself for losing concentration while performing such delicate work, "just singed myself a little. No big deal."

Athena removes the glove on her right hand to examine the wound. Nothing major. The skin didn't even break. It is however, turning red. She'd likely have blisters too.

Jolie looks at Athena with concern, "It's not like you to be so careless," the teenager observes.

"Yeah, well," Athena says, wrapping her singed fingers in a medicated cloth taken from her utility belt's first aid kit, "I'm only human, right?"

Jolie grins, "I never thought I'd hear you admit that."

Athena returns the grin, but somewhat wryly, "Having to take care of you has shown me my limitations."

Jolie says, "I don't think it's worrying about me that's got you lost in daydreams. It's Hathaway, isn't it?"

Athena leans back against the maintenance dock's guardrail as she applies more pressure to her burn wound, "Why is it that these days, all of our conversations revolve around Hathaway Noah?"

"Because you never answer my questions," Jolie persists, "As your best friend, I want to know if you're really in love with him."

Athena becomes serious, "How can I answer that question when I don't know the answer myself, Jolie?"

"Cut the B.S., Athena," Jolie says, "I know you, remember? You can't be that confused. You never are…about anything."

"Well, there's always a first time," Athena concedes, re-donning her glove and picking up the welding burner to continue her work.

Jolie takes a different tack, "Athena…I know you're not sure what to do. If Hathaway really is Mafty…"

"He is," Athena confirms, working the burner again, "there's no 'if' anymore."

Jolie says, "Well, then…"

Athena asks, "What would you do in my position?"

Jolie goes wide-eyed. She doesn't know how to respond to that one, "Well, um. I'd, uh…"

"That's what I thought," Athena says, "You'll be interested to know that I don't have any better idea than you do about what I'm going to do."

"You've always taught me," Jolie says, "that a soldier is in greatest danger when she loses focus on her objective."

Athena sighs, "That's right."

Neither of them knows what to say next. In many ways, what happens next seems out of their hands.

Athena shakes her head as she continues her work. She curses herself for having committed one of the cardinal sins of military life.

She has fallen in love with the enemy.

General Bright Noah and General Manron Blackhead arrive at Whampoa Base from Shanghai under heavy escort. Nothing is left to chance this time. Two full MS squadrons and supporting fighter squadrons escort the generals' convoy in an impressive show of force. The time to be stealthy has given way to the time to show uncompromising strength.

For the generals' safety, it has been decided to have them stay on the base rather than in the city on the final day before they are to return to space. The space shuttles _Nightwing_ and _Kobayashi_ (replacing the destroyed _Silverthread_) are on the launch pad, being prepped for their return flights to Side 7. A larger transport ship, the _Wygan_, will transport the mobile suits of the Special Forces and their pilots back to their home base at Garrison Noah. The departure time has been settled: 15:00 the following afternoon, scarcely twenty-four hours from the present time. Good weather is anticipated for that hour.

At 11:00 the following morning, Captain Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh are in the control/observation tower of Whampoa Base along with the base's chief security officer, Major Rogan Nelson. Nelson, a tall, stocky man of about forty years with a dark complexion and a wispy moustache, is known as something of an egotist.

_"As long as I'm in charge here,"_ Nelson likes to brag, _"Whampoa Base will be more secure than the core of the Earth!"_

Nelson's record, unfortunately, does not live up to his braggadocio. As is the case throughout the Earth Federation Forces, security at Whampoa is fluid at best.

One part of Maj. Nelson's reputation that does meet, indeed surpasses expectations, however, is his infamy as a womanizer. Although known to be married, Maj. Nelson is nevertheless well known as a bit of a lecher…never failing to ogle the female soldiers and officers that he encounters on the base. He was severely reprimanded on one occasion for making a pass and suggestive remark to the wife of a visiting Federation Deliberative Council member.

And so it is that Athena and Jolie have been avoiding the man's attempts to put the moves on them. It has taken all of Athena's force of control to prevent Jolie from kicking the senior officer where it would hurt most after he had attempted to lift the back of her short uniform skirt. Even then, Athena would not have had the heart to discipline Jolie if she'd succeeded in doing so. Athena feels a bit like kicking the man in the privates herself.

Topping off the unpleasant experience of having to share a space with this pervert is having to listen to his stories about his supposed heroic exploits defending Whampoa Base from Zeon saboteurs. Nelson's stories of his supposed manly valor grow increasingly humorous in their sheer improbable hyperbole. Athena and Jolie struggle to stifle their laughter.

As Nelson brags loudly about how he once singlehandedly chased away three Zeon spy planes, Jolie rolls her eyes and whispers confidentially to Athena, "Ohmigod, what a pig this guy is."

Athena nods, but puts a reassuring hand on Jolie's shoulder, "Easy. In just a few hours, we'll be tens of thousands of kilometers away from this loser back on Side 7."

"Thank God," Jolie whispers back, "Zero-G never sounded so good!"

Athena misses space too. They have been on Earth for ten days, and as is typical of Spacenoids, have become uncomfortable in Earth's direct gravity. Jolie has complained that Earth's gravity makes her feel twice as heavy as she actually is.

"And that's why, my lovely ladies," Nelson concludes his long, rambling, shamelessly self-referential speech, "Whampoa Base will always be the Federation's most sec…"

A radio message comes into the control tower from a foot patrol soldier just outside the perimeter of the base, "Major, sir. This is Patrol D3. We've found the wreck of an abandoned mobile suit just outside the base perimeter."

"What?" Nelson asks in incredulous surprise.

Athena and Jolie exchange worried glances.

"What should we do?" Nelson asks, at a loss.

"Let's get out there, now," Athena says, taking charge.

It is an AMS-140S Officer's Regelg, in terrible condition, and apparently long abandoned. The rusted, scorched external armor suggests a great amount of damage sustained long ago, most likely during the First Neo Zeon War.

"Can't believe that this thing has just been lying out here for years and years," Sergeant Menendez, whose unit found the mecha buried in the snow, reports to Maj. Nelson, "it's a vintage Neo Zeon Regelg."

"To think it's been lying here all this time," Maj. Nelson remarks, "Well, let's get a transport crew out here to haul it back to the hangar. Maybe we can…"

"No," Athena cuts in, having just returned from where she and Jolie have finished inspecting the abandoned Neo Zeon mecha, "I smell a Trojan Horse. We should destroy this unit immediately."

"Oh, come now, Captain Ibaz," Nelson says, thinking of a great hangar trophy to burnish his reputation as a lion of the Earth Federation Forces, "surely this old wreck can't present any threat."

"Major," Athena says calmly, but firmly, "With all due respect, this represents a major breach of security."

Major Nelson is not accustomed to being admonished by junior officers, particularly not by a _woman_, "Captain Ibaz, I am in charge here and…"

While Athena is being forced to listen to Nelson's dubious list of "achievements" once again, Jolie continues inspecting the abandoned enemy mobile suit. Both she and Athena have concluded that something isn't quite right about the Regelg. The first thing that Athena and Jolie did after arriving upon the scene was pry open the mobile suit's cockpit hatch. The cockpit, in terrible condition, was abandoned…no sign of a pilot's corpse.

Jolie spots an unusual bulge in the Regelg's armor, inconsistent with what she knows of the profile of this particular model of mobile suit. Most likely, it's some sort of attached secondary systems unit…quite common on mobile suits of the First Neo Zeon War era. Then again…

Gripping a wrench that she had brought with her from the land rover that she, Athena, and Maj. Nelson had ridden in from the control tower to the perimeter, Jolie begins to bang loudly on the armor of the anomalous bulge.

Inside the secret, secondary cockpit of the Regelg, Col. Shin Matsunaga listens to the clamorous din that Jolie is causing on the outside.

_Might as well get started,_ Matsunaga thinks to himself, _looks like my cover is about to be blown anyway._

The loud bangs that Jolie is causing on the Regelg's external shell with the wrench interrupts Athena and Nelson's conversation (to Athena's relief and Nelson's irritation).

Looking at Jolie, Athena says, "What the hell are you doing up there?"

Jolie points frantically at the armored bulge beneath her booted feet, "Come check this out!"

Knowing to trust her talented protégé's judgment on matters such as these, Athena sprints over to the wreckage of the Regelg and deftly leaps up to join Jolie on the shell of the mecha.

"You ever see a Neo Zeon mobile suit with this kind of bulge on it?" Jolie asks.

"No," Athena admits, "This definitely isn't something standard. We definitely need to…"

Athena doesn't get to complete her sentence. The Regelg's monoeye flashes to life, the cold, dark cyclopean visor of the mecha suddenly burning a hellish red.

The telltale roar of a mobile suit's nuclear fusion engine revving up breaks the silence of the wintry wilderness. The mobile suit begins to rise.

Athena and Jolie, caught off-guard by the suddenness of the mobile suit's activation, hang on to the mecha's external armor for dear life as the Regelg rises into a standing position.

Nelson and the men of Patrol Unit D3 watch in horror as the apparently damaged enemy mobile suit reveals itself to be fully functional. It is just as Athena said: a Trojan Horse.

"Help! Get outta my way!" shouts a panicked Major Nelson, fleeing ahead of his troops from the now erect Regelg mobile suit.

"A little appetizer," Shin Matsunaga grins in the cockpit of the Regelg, using his mecha's head-mounted Vulcan machineguns to reduce Nelson and the patrol unit to bloody piles of flesh.

The Neo Zeon mobile suit enters the perimeter of Whampoa Base, perhaps oblivious to the two young Federal Forces officers hanging on for dear life on its external armor.

"Jolie!" Athena calls out, "We've got to get to the hangar!"

"Right!" Jolie replies, "Let's do it!"

Athena and Jolie simultaneously release their grips on the armor of the Regelg. The two young women drop some twelve meters onto the snowy ground below. Only their superb training allows Athena and Jolie to survive a fall that would have killed or seriously injured most others. The two fall upon the snowy ground, tumble away the momentum, and then quickly leap out of the way of the advancing enemy mobile suit's giant armored feet.

"Are you all right?" Athena asks Jolie.

Jolie gives Athena a thumbs-up, "Yeah. How 'bout you?"

"I'm fine," Athena replies, "Let's head for the hangar, now!"

Athena and Jolie break into a sprint across the base. The Regelg has spotted them and is firing upon them with the same Vulcan cannon that recently disposed of Nelson and the patrol unit.

Athena and Jolie dodge the gunfire by scrambling around as they run in the direction of the hangar, making it difficult for the Regelg to get a bead upon them.

Athena pulls out her comlink and opens channels throughout Whampoa Base, "This is Captain Ibaz! Red alert! The base is under attack! I repeat: red alert! The base is under attack! Breach in Western Perimeter, Sector G7! All units deploy to Sector G7 and intercept the enemy!"

The mobile suit pilots of the Centurion Team are already deploying in their mobile suits when Athena and Jolie reach the hangar. Athena has left Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said in charge until she and Jolie can join the battle.

Athena and Jolie hastily don their normalsuits and helmets, then dash to the cockpits of the Cour De Leon and Centurion Gundam, respectively. Within minutes, the two ace mobile suit pilots join their unit.

As suddenly as it had appeared, the mysterious Regelg has apparently vanished, ghostlike, into the wilderness. By the time that mobile suits from the Special Forces and Whampoa Base's own security units arrive at the perimeter, only the mangled bodies of Maj. Nelson and the members of Patrol D3 serve as evidence that it had been there.

Brigadier General Rolando Bassani, the commander of Whampoa Base, has taken over direct command of the effort to locate and destroy the enemy unit. The Federal Forces mobile suits are ordered to fan out and locate the target. Termination with extreme prejudice has been ordered.

An hour later, the mysterious enemy mobile suit has not reemerged. The Federal Forces mobile suits continue to ply the snowy wastes searching for their quarry, but their prey eludes them.

Still, there is a general consensus that the enemy is out there, waiting for the right moment to pounce.

_The White Wolf of the North has come, and you are all but sheep before me._

Cpl. Eddie "The Ed" Fredericks of the Aragon Team yawns in the cockpit of his Jegan mobile suit. Eddie is convinced that the enemy mobile suit, such as it was, has probably been scared off by the tremendous display of force that Whampoa Base has sent out in response. He's waiting for General Bassani or Captain Ibaz or somebody to sound the all clear so that he can return to the base for a good nap.

The Heat Hawk slices across the Jegan's vital head/body joint assembly with sickening swiftness. The Jegan's head falls from the mobile suit's body.

Eddie's internal monitors and sensors go dark.

A blade of superheated photon energy abruptly rips through Eddie's back. In an instant, he is no more. Sleep granted. Eternal sleep.

The snow-hued Regelg of the White Wolf extracts his mecha's beam saber from the back of Cpl. Eddie's Jegan.

"One sheep down," Col. Matsunaga sighs heavily, with a tone of regret. 

_This isn't combat_, Matsunaga thinks to himself, _This is butchery. I am a warrior. Are there no other warriors left to fight me? Are there only sheep to be slaughtered?_

Matsunaga takes a deep swig from his whiskey flask, seeking his next quarry.

About a kilometer to the southwest, Athena asks her communications and reconnaissance officer, "Anna, have you got anything?"

"Negative, ma'am," replies the efficient, bespectacled Cpl. Anna Horowitz, "My surveillance equipment isn't registering any bogies."

_That doesn't mean he's not out there_, Athena thinks to herself.

"We have lost contact with a few units that had been patrolling a few kilometers northeast of our location," Anna adds ominously, "Trying to reestablish contact." 

A Newtype PSI-energy spark emanates from Athena's helmeted head, and from Jolie's in the Centurion Gundam. They both sense it. For Athena, especially, the sensation is familiar.

"Jolie," Athena radios to the Centurion Gundam, "Take command here. There's something I need to investigate."

"Let me come with you," Jolie offers.

"Negative," Athena replies, "You've led the squad in training maneuvers. Now, let's see how you lead them in a real battle. Centurion Leader out."

The Cour De Leon transforms into Waverider mode and vanishes over the canopy of trees.

"'Thena!" Jolie protests, but her commanding officer is gone.

_OK, I'm in charge,_ Jolie tells herself determinedly, _I'd better do it right, or innocent people will get killed._

"2Lt. Minh to all units," Jolie radios the rest of the team, "sound off immediately if you encounter anything. Don't try to take the enemy alone. Call for backup if you encounter the enemy."

"Yes, ma'am" comes from the Centurions.

_I may not be Athena_, Jolie thinks to herself, _but I can lead._

Meanwhile, the White Wolf has silently disabled two more Federal Forces mobile suits, silencing their pilots with instant death.

_Slaughter, nothing but slaughter,_ Shin Matsunaga reflects bitterly.

In the cockpit of his Jegan, Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe of the Centurion Team grins dreamily at the images in his Datapad…images he has secretly taken of his commanding officer, Captain Athena Ibaz and his junior executive officer, 2Lt. Jolie Minh.

During the past few months, Geoff has taken every opportunity to furtively take photos of the two beautiful young women that commanded his unit. To date, he has quite a collection: about fifty photos of each of them.

The only frustrating thing for Geoff is that the overwhelming majority of the photos feature Athena and Jolie in their dress uniforms or normalsuits. Of Jolie, he had three or four photos in more casual clothing…including a few in very short and revealing nightshirts that Geoff regards as the prize of his collection.

Geoff stares at the photos with a goofy grin on his face, picturing Athena and Jolie in skimpy bikinis…in lingerie…in nothing at all.

The image of a Heat Hawk suddenly fills the forward monitor of Geoff's Jegan.

"GAHHHH!!!!!!!!" Geoff screams in mortal terror.

The Heat Hawk rises up terrifyingly.

Geoff Sutcliffe makes peace with his Maker.

The Heat Hawk arcs downward for the kill.

Its objective is denied by the Centurion Gundam's beam saber blade.

"Get out of here, Geoff!" Jolie calls out through the tactical net, "Rendezvous with the rest of the squad and go support Athena! I'll handle this!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe replies, vectoring his Jegan away to comply with Jolie's orders. He'd have to buy her a drink later; after all, she's only saved his life (again).

In the cockpit of the Officer's Regelg, Colonel Shin Matsunaga, the White Wolf, regards his new opponent with a sense of outrage. How _dare_ this interloper interfere with a kill!

Matsunaga soon realizes, however, that his new opponent is a Gundam-class mobile suit, and on its chest directly above the cockpit hatch is the image of a burning White Phoenix.

Matsunaga grins, "Finally, another warrior whom I can actually combat instead of slaughter…you're the second one, White Phoenix. Let's see if you're as good as Amuro Ray was."

The White Wolf lances forth with his mobile suit's beam naginata. The motion of his saber strikes is like a thousand snowflakes blown forth by the force of a blizzard.

Jolie leaps the Centurion Gundam back a distance of approximately five hundred meters. The White Wolf follows trails her like a shadow, the tip of its beam saber seeming to advance upon multiple points of the Centurion Gundam simultaneously.

Jolie feels a sense of dread creeping up her spine. For the first time in a long while, she experiences fear.

Two kilometers away, Athena converts her Cour De Leon from Waverider to mobile suit configuration and sets the mecha down in the snowy forest.

The Cour De Leon draws its beam rifle and assumes a combat crouch that would seem impossible for a mobile suit, straining its points of articulation and motor gears to the limit. Nonetheless, with the mobile suit in this position, the tall conifers of the forest conceal Athena's mobile suit from view.

Athena waits silently. Patiently. She knows that her moment of reckoning will soon be at hand. She knows what she will do, although even she cannot predict the outcome.

Either Mafty would die, or she would.

And then, like a ghost sweeping across the snowy land, he appears…the white Hizack Sniper Custom of Mafty, laden with heavy explosives.

Athena raises the Cour De Leon's beam rifle from behind the cover of the trees, aiming a shot not directly at, but in the path of the Hizack Sniper Custom.

Hathaway Noah, Mafty, brings the Hizack Sniper Custom to an immediate halt as the beam blast passes just in front of the monoeye of his mobile suit. Had he been moving even slightly faster, the beam would have caught the Hizack on the side of its head.

Hathaway drops the Hizack onto its belly, aiming the mecha's beam rifle in the general direction from which the shot was fired. He unleashes a single retaliatory blast.

Athena slides the Cour De Leon aside just in time to avoid being nailed by Hathaway's retaliatory shot. She raises the Cour De Leon to a standing position and fires a retaliatory shot of her own.

Hathaway intercepts the shot with a missile fired from one of the launch tubes attached to the Hizack's leg. The subsequent explosion rocks the air with a loud roar and fills the sky with smoke.

From behind the cloud of smoke emerges the Hizack, its beam saber thrusting towards the heart of the Cour De Leon.

"Fabulous," Shin Matsunaga enthuses, "Absolutely fabulous!"

To Matsunaga's surprise and delight, the enemy Centurion Gundam unit has successfully survived ninety seconds of his attacks. Beam rifle shots, beam naginata slashes, missile fire…the Centurion Gundam has, thus far, succeeded in dodging it all. In his long military career, Shin Matsunaga has known only one other opponent who ever lasted this long against him in battle.

Aboard the Centurion Gundam, Jolie has no idea that her enemy is greatly impressed with her skills. She's struggling to just barely stay ahead of his moves, several times avoiding death by mere millimeters and milliseconds.

_Damn,_ Jolie grits her teeth, _This guy's good! Really good! I don't know if I can handle him!_

Thus far, Jolie has been completely on the defensive. The enemy had seized the initiative from the start, and Jolie has not been able to take it back. Every move she has made since the battle began fewer than two minutes ago has been made in self-defense. Each time that Jolie has attempted to retaliate and take the offensive, she has been thwarted by the White Wolf's relentless attacks.

Athena's words return to haunt Jolie, _You can't rely on your talent, reflexes, and instincts alone. You need to outthink your opponent…_

Jolie recalls her favorite story, Louis Cha's wuxia novel _The Giant Eagle and Its Companion._ She remembers that the female protagonist of that story, Dragon Girl, often used soft weaponry such as ribbons to great effect against much more powerful enemies.

The Centurion Gundam is not equipped with silk ribbons, but it _does_ come equipped with magnetic clamp cables.

With the Centurion Gundam's left arm, Jolie raises the reinforced armored shield of her mecha to protect herself from the hail of Vulcan cannon fire that the white Regelg torments her with.

Without losing a step, Jolie aims the right arm of the Centurion Gundam at the Regelg, not to fire the beam rifle or slash with the beam saber, but to deploy the mobile suit's magnetic clamp cables, stored in the mecha's forearm.

Magnetic clamp cables, standard equipment on all Earth Federation Forces' mobile suits manufactured after the year U.C. 0086, are not designed for combat, but transport. In deep space, mobile suits frequently use magnetic clamp cables to drag massive objects such as disabled space cruisers or large space colony components. The cables are meant to be used as utility tools, not weapons.

But to a warrior such as Jolie Minh, anything can become a weapon.

The magnetic clamp cables snake around the White Wolf's Regelg before it can dodge away. So sudden and unexpected is the move that even Shin Matsunaga fails to avoid it in time.

"Odd strategy," Matsunaga remarks to himself, "Interesting. Let's see what she does next."

With a grunt of effort, Jolie pushes the lever that causes the Centurion Gundam to reel the Regelg in. As the enemy's greatest advantage seems to be, like her own, superior speed, Jolie has determined that her best chance of winning this battle is at close quarters. 

Matsunaga, for his part, has already guessed what Jolie's plan is. He smiles at the sheer audacity of it, even as he shakes its head at the inevitability of its failure, "So you want to fight in close quarters, eh? Foolish girl. Close quarter combat is the White Wolf's birthright!"

Still reeling the Regelg in with the magnetic clamp cable in the Centurion Gundam's right hand, Jolie directs her mobile suit to cast its defensive shield aside and draw the beam saber with its left hand…her weaker hand. It'll be an awkward angle for a strike, to say the least.

Matsunaga, for his part, has not drawn the Regelg's beam naginata yet. There is time still. Might as well let the girl enjoy these last few seconds…let her think she's won the battle, then carve her to shards.

"Such a shame," Matsunaga sighs sadly, "She shows such promise. In ten years' time, she could conceivably actually beat me."

Athena launches the Cour De Leon high into the air, avoiding the Hizack Sniper Custom's advancing beam saber tip by the slightest of margins.

Athena transforms the Cour De Leon into Waverider configuration to put a suitable fighting distance between herself and Hathaway's Hizack. It turns out to be a tactically prescient maneuver, as Hathaway's next move is to fire three more missiles at the Cour De Leon.

The Cour De Leon twists and spins to avoid the incoming salvo. Athena activates ECM (electronic countermeasures) to jam the guidance systems of two of the missiles, and fires heat chaffs to draw away and detonate a third, heat-seeking missile.

With the missiles disposed of, Athena turns the Cour De Leon Waverider 180 degrees and dives back towards the Hizack, firing her aerodynamic mecha's beam cannon. 

Hathaway backs the Hizack away from Athena's cannon fire, attempting to skeet the Cour De Leon out of the sky with his Hizack's own beam rifle, but finding no success.

As savage as the battle appears, experienced and keen-eyed veterans of mobile suit warfare would observe that the two combatants appear to be reluctant to truly strike at each other. Indeed, had Athena or Hathaway truly meant to kill each other, one or the other would have already perished several minutes earlier.

Neither one, however, can bear to actually unleash lethal force upon the other. Both curse themselves for their weakness.

_Are you in love with Hathaway Noah?_ Jolie's words once again invade Athena's thoughts.

_Athena…Athena, why did it have to be you?_ Hathaway reflects bitterly.

In the cockpit of the Cour De Leon, Athena has come to a resolution. She knows what she will do. This ends now.

As it dives towards the Hizack, the Cour De Leon transforms back from Waverider into mobile suit configuration. Using the force of her mecha's descent, Athena rams the Cour De Leon into the Hizack, knocking the opposing mobile suit off of its feet.

As an excellent mobile suit engineer and technician in her own right, Athena knows that all mobile suits possess certain centralized joints and servomotors that, if disabled, would effectively immobilize the mobile suit without destroying it. Athena draws the Cour De Leon's beam saber and proceeds to surgically disable those joints and servomotors on Hathaway's downed Hizack. Within seconds, the vital connections that enable the mobile suit to move are severed. The Hizack becomes a quadriplegic war machine.

The combat computer aboard the Hizack tells Hathaway Noah what he already knows. His mobile suit is disabled.

_So much for Paul Cezanne,_ Hathaway reflects on the two paintings that his providers had taken from him earlier that morning.

Hathaway extracts his sidearm from its hip-mounted holster and opens the cockpit hatch of the Hizack. He quickly scrambles out of the cockpit into the cold, snowy air of the northern Chinese forest.

As Hathaway leaps off the Hizack onto the snowy ground below, he notes that Athena has landed the Cour De Leon. She could finish him off with the single press of a button now if she wishes to.

To Hathaway's surprise, Athena opens the cockpit of the Cour De Leon and disembarks from her mecha. Apparently, she means to settle this in the flesh.

As the battle occurs on the surface of Earth, the two pilots actually need not keep their helmet visors down, concealing their faces behind dark, reinforced Plexiglas. They maintain their lowered visors, however, perhaps to make it easier to do what they must do next.

Athena points her sidearm, a compact Walther pistol, directly at Hathaway. Hathaway likewise has his weapon, a Winchester automatic, pointed at Athena.

They face each other in a moment of terrible decision.

"Go to hell!" Jolie screams as she arcs the Centurion Gundam's beam saber forth in a deadly slash.

Shin Matsunaga turns the slash aside with a casual parry of the Regelg's beam naginata. He had read Jolie's move, and blocked it with consummate ease.

"Is that all you've got, 'White Phoenix?'" Matsunaga taunts, "Disappointing, to say the least."

So saying, Matsunaga directs his Regelg in a vicious kick that strikes the Centurion Gundam directly on the cockpit hatch.

Jolie screams in pain at the force of the impact. The shock of the strike causes Jolie to feel as if her bones are being ripped apart.

_Get up! Get up!_ Jolie tells herself. Despite her pain, she needs to stand the Centurion Gundam up and be ready to meet the White Wolf's next move. She would be dead within seconds if she doesn't.

The Centurion Gundam rises firing desperately with its beam rifle. Jolie is lashing out blindly, hoping to at least keep the White Wolf off balance until she can clear her mind.

But the White Wolf is gone.

Jolie looks at her tracking monitor. There are friendly mobile suits scattered in the area within a ten kilometer radius, but the Centurion Gundam's sensors detect no trace of the white Regelg she had been struggling with just seconds earlier.

Jolie re-holsters the Centurion Gundam's beam rifle and once again draws the beam saber. Again drawing from the lessons she has learned from Athena, and from her previous battle experiences, Jolie closes her eyes and reaches out with her mind.

Behind the Centurion Gundam, the white Regelg suddenly reappears, the blade of its beam naginata rising menacingly towards the motionless Earth Federation Forces' mobile suit.

They shoot simultaneously. The bullets miss their targets by mere millimeters.

Athena leaps from the cockpit hatch of the Cour De Leon. She executes a neat forward somersault to land directly in front of Hathaway Noah. He levels his pistol at her, but Athena knocks the weapon out of his hand with a well-timed chop to Hathaway's wrist.

Hathaway retaliates with a series of blows that reflect _Wing Chun_ style martial arts, powerful punches striking within short range from the attacker's body.

Athena blocks each of Hathaway's strikes with _Jeet Kune Do_ moves that counter Hathaway's attack motion for motion. Nevertheless, Hathaway stands a good twenty centimeters taller than Athena and has at least thirty kilograms' greater weight than she does. The blows drive Athena back.

_Must change tactics,_ Athena realizes.

Noticing that Hathaway's footwork is relatively weak, Athena goes for a sweeping kick in an attempt to knock the young man off his feet. Hathaway anticipates the move and avoids the sweep by leaping over Athena's leg, but he fails to anticipate Athena's follow up, which is to knee him in the groin.

Seething in pain, Hathaway is unable to counter as Athena twists him onto the ground. Her feathery weight lies atop him as it did that one, wondrous night they spent together.

For a moment, it is that night again: their naked bodies lying warmly together as a cold winter night passed beyond the walls of Hathaway's apartment. He recalls her soft, smooth, silky skin…the light in her eyes and the warmth of her breath. She recalls the security and comfort of his arms, wishing she could be embraced by them forever. A precious moment, now forever lost. That night, Athena willingly surrendered herself to Hathaway as she had never surrendered to anyone before.

For both their sakes, she cannot surrender to him again. Not today.

Athena presses the barrel of her sidearm against Hathaway's helmeted head. For a long moment, the star-crossed couple lies silent and still.

_Behind you!_ Jolie's mind sparks, suddenly alert to danger.

Jolie brings the beam saber of the Centurion Gundam up and back just in time to avoid being impaled in the back by the white Regelg's beam naginata.

"Very good!" Shin Matsunaga enthuses, "Hah! You're much better than I thought you were, girl!"

Jolie has a flash of inspiration. She deploys the Centurion Gundam's magnetic clamp cables again. Once again, the long, metal cables wrap themselves around the body of the White Wolf's mobile suit.

"This tactic again?" Matsunaga wonders, "What makes you think it'll work this time, eh?"

In the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, Jolie diverts ALL of her mobile suit's electrical power in a surge through the magnetic clamp cables. If her ploy fails, her Centurion Gundam would be powerless and immobile for at least five minutes. Failure would mean certain death.

The electrical current, thousands upon thousands of kilowatts, surges from the Centurion Gundam's nuclear fusion engine through the magnetic clamp cable into the white Regelg.

In the cockpit of his mobile suit, Colonel Shin Matsunaga is enveloped in a cocoon of lightning. Matsunaga grits his teeth in agony as his internal organs boil. Burnt, smoking blood begins to ooze forth from his mouth, nose, and ears.

Matsunaga begins to laugh maniacally, "So this is how it ends for the White Wolf, eh?"

His mobile suit irrevocably immobilized, and knowing that his heart and lungs will soon follow, Matsunaga directs a thought to his enemy and slayer, _Bravo, girl, bravo. You truly are a great warrior. Someday, you might even prove yourself the greatest._

Aboard the Centurion Gundam, Jolie pants hard from the exertion of defeating her powerful enemy. The white Regelg is essentially dead, its circuitry fried beyond all possibility of function without extensive repair. The Centurion Gundam stands triumphant, but equally still over its fallen prey.

Deep within her mind, Jolie reads her enemy's thoughts, the admiration and respect she has won from the dying old warrior.

_You were only the second true opponent I've ever had,_ Jolie's Newtype mind hears, _Fight well, and fight with honor, girl. Don't ever let combat devolve into slaughter…and don't waste your life upon slaughter like I have._

Jolie disembarks from the Centurion Gundam's cockpit and removes her helmet. She leaps down onto the wrecked Regelg's chest. She suspects there is very little fight left in her enemy, but she draws her sidearm just in case.

The complete electrical systems failure induced by the Centurion Gundam's final attack has forced the cockpit hatch of the Officer's Regelg open. Had it been otherwise, Jolie would not have been able to open the armored hatch to access the pilot within.

Jolie climbs into the cockpit of the Regelg, sidearm directed at her mortally wounded foeman. Jolie can see dark blood oozing downward from the broken O-ring between the pilot's helmet and normalsuit.

Jolie checks around the cockpit and on the enemy pilot's person. No sidearm or weaponry of any sort…not even so much as a survival knife. Either the height of self-confidence, or the height of arrogance. Jolie suspects that it's probably a bit of both.

Having confirmed that the enemy pilot poses no more threat to her, Jolie helps the dying man to remove his visored helmet.

She looks down upon the weathered face of an old warrior who has seen hundreds upon hundreds of battles over a lifetime. Countless Federal Forces mobile suit pilots have died at this man's hands, but today, he meets with the same fate as his victims. The man's right eye, covered by an eyepatch that also partially covers an ugly vertical scar, is evidence of a life defined by brutality and violence.

Jolie makes use of her military paramedic training in an attempt to stabilize the man, who is still conscious, but fading. Jolie radios for a medical unit, but she knows that it is futile. The man is dying.

Because of her.

Jolie regards her enemy with a sympathy she could not feel or show during the battle. He had been a legendary hero to many, a loathsome murderer to others, and a fearsome warrior in either case. But what of it? In the end, his name is added to the interminable list of combat victims…one more corpse for the ravenous beast known as War.

_Is this my final fate too?_ Jolie wonders.

The man opens his eyes. They fall upon a beautiful teenaged girl of Asian descent, her long, black hair flowing like a dark river down her back…her wide, expressive eyes the same ebony shade.

"W-what's your name, girl?" the man asks, coughing up a spurt of his lifeblood.

"2Lt. Jolie Minh, sir," Jolie replies with respectfulness uncommon to her.

"Care to keep an old soldier company…in his final moments, Lt. Minh?" the dying man asks.

"It'd be an honor, sir," Jolie replies.

Jolie kneels beside Col. Matsunaga like an obedient pupil before a wise old teacher.

"There is so much you must learn," Matsunaga says, "Don't…don't make the same mistakes that I did. You must…must not let yourself…turn into a monster. Not like I did."

"Sir," Jolie says tentatively.

"Look into my soul, Jolie," the man says, "What do you see?"

Against her better judgment, Jolie reaches with her mind into the man's soul. She sees a horrible, relentless darkness…blacker than the void of space. Then, the hellish image of a ravenous wolf, its sharp teeth stained with fresh blood, its eyes afire with madness.

Jolie is horrified.

"Do you understand, Jolie?" Matsunaga asks, coughing up more blood.

"I understand, sir," Jolie chokes out.

Hathaway Noah knows he does not have many options. Likely not even one. Not with Captain Athena Ibaz's Walther pistol pressed directly against his helmeted head. Nevertheless, if this is how it must end, he can take satisfaction in knowing that it comes at the hands of the woman he loves.

Hathaway closes his eyes, resigned to Eternity.

To his surprise, Athena backs off. She removes her helmet to face him unmasked.

"Get up," Athena orders coldly.

Hathaway rises to his feet. He also removes his helmet, letting it drop to the snow below his feet. He raises his hands in a gesture of surrender.

Athena's beautiful brown eyes are full of torment as she takes aim directly at Hathaway Noah's forehead.

Hathaway knows that Athena is regarded as the best markswoman in the Earth Federation Forces. At this range, death is more certain than the next day's sunrise.

Athena fires.

The bullet whizzes by Hathaway's ear, singing his right earlobe, but otherwise passing harmlessly by him.

"Mafty is dead," Athena says, "He's paid for his crimes, and he will never threaten the Earth Federation Government or its people again."

Hathaway wants to run to Athena. To take her into his arms and hold her forever.

Her next words and action freeze his heart like ice, colder than the snow all around them.

"Hathaway," Athena says in a quavering voice, "disappear…go into my blind spot."

"Athena…," Hathaway says, a bitter lump in his throat.

"Into my blind spot," Athena repeats quietly, "Go."

Hathaway backs away slowly. He finally turns, walking towards the forest beyond.

He spares one last glance back over his shoulder at the woman he loves. A single tear falls down his cheek.

Hathaway Noah disappears into the forest. Into Athena's blind spot.

Athena finally reholsters her sidearm. She turns away from the forest towards her Cour De Leon.

A cold wind sweeps across the snowy meadow. Athena hugs her elbows against the cold.

A pair of teardrops falls silently from Athena's brown eyes; they freeze to icicles upon the skin of her cheeks.

A minute later, Athena is back in the cockpit of the Cour De Leon. Wiping away tears, Athena locks onto the wreckage of Mafty's white Hizack Sniper Custom mobile suit with the Cour De Leon's beam rifle and opens fire.

A single beam blast ignites the flame. Athena adds a salvo of plasma missiles, ensuring nearly complete disintegration. There will be no trace of Mafty's mobile suit after the fire dies down.

As she watches the fire consume the remains of Hathaway's mobile suit, Athena thinks back to an ancient Chinese poem…one written by the 13th Century Chinese poet and scholar Yuan Haowen, and was frequently quoted by Louis Cha in Jolie's favorite novel, _The Giant Eagle and Its Companion._:

_  
O mortals, what is love?  
That binds beyond life on earth?  
To all corners, in pair we fly...  
Braving summer and winter, by and by...  
Union is bliss, parting is woe,  
Agony is boundless,   
For a lovelorn soul,  
Sweetheart...give me words,  
Trail of clouds drifting forward...  
And mountains capped with snow,   
Whither shall my lonesome shadow go??_

_What is love?_ Athena reflects, _Whither shall my lonesome shadow go?_

For once, Athena has no answers. Only an ache in her heart that she knows will never go away.

The beeping of the Cour De Leon's communications receiver breaks up Athena's reflections. It's Jolie.

"Centurion Two to Centurion Leader. 'Thena? Do you read me?"

Athena steadies her voice as best she can before replying, "Centurion Leader to Centurion Two. Go ahead, Jolie."

"Are you all right?" Jolie asks, noting the quaver in Athena's voice.

"I'm fine," Athena replies, "I've just taken care of Mafty."

The momentary silence on the other end reflects Jolie's shock, but Athena's executive officer and best friend soon replies, "I've got his accomplice here…alive! But if you want to interrogate him, you'd better hurry. I don't think he's going to stick around much longer."

Less than a minute later, Athena lands the Cour De Leon Waverider next to where Jolie's Centurion Gundam still has the White Wolf's inert Officer's Regelg bound by its magnetic clamp cables. Jolie is in the cockpit of the enemy mecha, watching over the dying enemy pilot.

Athena joins Jolie in the cockpit.

A flash of recognition, and a look of shock appear on the faces of Athena and Colonel Matsunaga as they set eyes upon one another.

Colonel Matsunaga is taken back in time some fifteen years. He remembers an adorable little girl of four years, the only daughter of his onetime liege lord and best friend, and the heir to the throne of the Archduchy of Zeon. Matsunaga had loved the girl as if she had been his own daughter, and the deadly warrior could, for several hours a week during his frequent visits, become like a child again himself as he played a game of dodgeball with the little Duchess, or taught her how to identify different kinds of birds and insects.

Athena is stricken with a flood of memories…memories of childhood. Those were lonely years…not because there had been no people around her. As Duchess of the Archduchy of Neo Zeon, she had dozens of attendants, officials, and military leaders waiting upon her, but few whom she could call her friend. One was Colonel Shin Matsunaga, the "White Wolf" who had fought so gallantly and spectacularly under her father's command. Colonel Shin was like a favorite uncle to Duchess Minerva. She remembers how, as a little girl, she enjoyed being lifted into the air in his arms, much to the concern and worry of her royal staff. But Colonel Shin would never let Duchess Minerva come to harm. He was too loyal to Zeon, and too loyal to Prince Dozle Zabi, to ever let such a thing happen. He would gladly give his own life a thousand times over for this child's.

The dying Matsunaga opens his mouth to speak one last time, "Mi…Mi ner..Min…"

The White Wolf is dead.

Athena kneels by the fallen Zeon warrior. For the second time today, her heart breaks.

Athena closes the man's eyes with her gloved right hand. Her facial expression is one of profound shock and loss.

Jolie, kneeling by Athena, notices, "Hey, are you all right, 'Thena? What's wrong?"

Fighting down an urge to scream, Athena whispers, "Nothing…nothing. Let's get ready to leave."

Jolie knows that despite her denials, something is definitely very wrong with Athena. She takes her friend by the arm and guides her down from the cockpit of the wrecked Regelg. Athena appears to be catatonic. Shell-shocked.

Some three hours later, the space shuttles _Nightwing_ and _Kobayashi_, bearing Generals Manron Blackhead and Bright Noah, launch from Whampoa Base without incident. Both shuttles are under heavy escort by Whampoa Base mobile suits and fighter aircraft, as well as three space battleships.

Also a part of the convoy to Side 7's Garrison Noah is the mobile suit carrier ship _Wygan_, aboard which are the Centurion Team and the other Special Forces teams that had accompanied the generals to Earth, along with the teams' mobile suits.

Athena and Jolie sit next to each other in the passenger cabin of the ship. Athena looks very tired and depressed. Jolie has never seen her friend like this before.

Sick with worry, Jolie finally speaks up, "Athena. Did you really do it? Did you kill Hathaway?"

Athena shakes her head, "I killed Mafty. I didn't kill Hathaway."

For a moment, Jolie is confused. Isn't that the same thing? Then, Athena's true meaning dawns upon her. Jolie smiles proudly at Athena.

Athena says with a quaver in her voice, "I performed my duty, but I couldn't bring myself to kill Hathaway. I…I love him."

Jolie senses the deep pain in her best friend's heart. Even so, Athena stubbornly refuses to let those emotions out.

_Poor Athena,_ Jolie reflects, _Her heart is breaking, but even now, she doesn't know how to cry._

Jolie opens her arms to Athena, determined to help her friend.

Athena accepts her friend's generosity, letting herself be held by Jolie.

Jolie begins to sob. If Athena can't bring herself to cry, Jolie will cry for her.

The convoy continues its path towards Side 7. A bitter day has come to an end, but it is just one day. Many more days, some sweet, some bitter, lie ahead.

_  
O mortals, what is love?  
That binds beyond life on earth?  
To all corners, in pair we fly...  
Braving summer and winter, by and by...  
Union is bliss, parting is woe,  
Agony is boundless,   
For a lovelorn soul,  
Sweetheart...give me words,  
Trail of clouds drifting forward...  
And mountains capped with snow,   
Whither shall my lonesome shadow go??_


	9. Chapter 9: THE KILLERS

EPISODE 9: THE KILLERS

Side 3 was the birthplace of both the Republic of Zeon and its successor state, the Archduchy of Zeon. The space colony built furthest from Earth beyond the dark side of the moon was and remains the font of Contolism, the ideology first promulgated by the Spacenoid philosopher and statesman Zeon Zum Daikun. It was at Side 3, during the early U.C. 0050s, that Daikun first began to speak out on the issue of Spacenoid rights, and to advance his theory of the evolution of human beings into Newtypes.

Even back in those comparatively benign days, the Earth Federation Government treated Side 3 as a callous parent would treat a willful and fractious child. The people of Side 3 have long been the most staunchly anti-Earth Federation of Spacenoids, and the most often subject to the Federation's often arbitrary whims.

After the end of the One Year War in January, U.C. 0080, the Earth Federation Forces occupied Side 3 and nominally reinstated the Republic of Zeon. A name was all that this puppet state had in common, however, with the idealistic and progressive government that Zeon Zum Daikun had once presided over. The postwar Republic of Zeon was nothing more than a tool of the Earth Federation Forces to govern the still-restive population of Side 3, although the real threat (i.e. surviving elements of the Archduchy of Zeon) had fled to the Asteroid Belt and the Outer Solar System.

During the First Neo Zeon War of U.C. 0088, Regent Haman Khan's Axis Forces captured the colony, bringing Side 3 under Zeon control again. Side 3 was "liberated" by the Earth Federation/AEUG Alliance at the end of that war, and once again the Federal Forces occupied Side 3, this time under a state of perpetual martial law, which continued in place even through Colonel Char Aznable's final bid at restoring the Archduchy of Zeon in U.C. 0093. The following year, Artasia Som Daikun (Sayla Mass), Char's younger sister and daughter of Zeon Zum Daikun, founded the Independent Spacenoid Republic (ISR) movement, hoping to revive her late father's idealistic dreams.

In late U.C. 0098, however, the only dreams known by the people of Side 3 are nightmares.

On an early December day in Zum City, former capital city of the Republic of Zeon and the Archduchy of Zeon, no festive pre-holiday atmosphere is evident, as has been the case during the nearly two decades since the One Year War. How can people celebrate a holiday dedicated to peace when the specter of war hangs perpetually over them?

Poverty and strife have marked most of Zum City's history during the past twenty years. Once the opulent capital of a mighty state, a seat of government and home to royalty and aristocracy, Zum City today is tolerable only to the hardiest of souls.

In the midst of the city, Federal authorities are seen doling out meager supplies of food, medicine, clothing, and other basic necessities to poverty-stricken civilians. As an occupied war zone, Side 3 is unstable and subject to constant disturbances by ISRLA and Zeon guerilla fighters. Once a model of space colony self-sufficiency held up as a brilliant example of how Spacenoids could establish their own nations independent of Earth, Side 3 now finds itself barely subsisting off the Earth Federation Government's largesse. Aid from the Federation, however, comes reluctantly and minimally, and often with terrible abuses.

At the moment, in downtown Zum City, two Federal relief workers carry a heavy crate of overripe apples for distribution to the masses. Fresh fruit is a rare and valued commodity in Side 3, as the colony's once abundant hydroponics farms have mostly ceased to function. The beleaguered relief workers drop the crate, causing it to shatter, sending dozens of apples rolling onto the street.

There is a mad scramble among the crowd of civilians to grab an apple. For many of them, it will be the only meal they will have this day…perhaps a number of days. Parents of young children grab as many apples as they can, stuffing the fruits into the mouths of their children. Others shove their neighbors aside for a precious apple, rotted and worm-ridden as the fruit might be. The desperate faces of hunger are seen everywhere; all pretense of civilized behavior is abandoned.

The crowds push, jostle, stomp, and grab. Several fights break out over possession of an apple. Within minutes, a Federal Forces Military Police vehicle arrives on the scene.

The sergeant in charge of the MP squad yells through his bullhorn, "Order! Order, you despicable Zeon dogs! Try to behave like human beings, hard as that is for you!"

If the scrambling crowds hear the sergeant, they ignore him. Is there time to be concerned with law and order when starvation is at hand?

"Spacenoid bastards!" the sergeant seethes. He turns to his squad, "At them, men! Show them how the Federation treats Zeon savages who can't follow simple orders!"

The MPs beat upon the civilians with their billy clubs. There are some retaliatory shoves from the civilians, but for the most part, the impoverished people are more intent on feeding themselves than fighting their oppressors.

Failing to establish the order that he desires, the sergeant becomes livid. He issues his next order, "You dogs want to eat? All right, then: eat hot lead! Open fire!"

The squad of MPs armed with carbines fire into the crowd, killing several dozen civilians in a hail of bullets. Human bodies emaciated by hunger are penetrated by rounds of explosive ammunition, which also penetrate and poison the flesh of many apples. Many of the hungry men, women, and children die with half eaten, rotten apples in their mouths.

A few kilometers away, a woman old enough to remember Side 3 in more peaceful days before the Contolist Revolution begs for some spare change from a patrol of Federal Forces infantrymen. Accompanying the old woman are her two grandchildren, a boy aged seven and a girl aged four.

"You want charity from us?!" demands the lead infantrymen, "We haven't made you people pay yet for what the Zabis did to the people on Earth during the war! The billions they killed!"

The Federal soldiers proceed to strike the old woman and her very young grandchildren with the butts of their rifles. The old woman and the toddlers are savagely beaten and left for dead.

A Federal soldier spits upon the wounded family, "Zeon pigs."

At the same time, in a nearby apartment, a poor electrician and his family are packing their meager possessions. They plan to leave Side 3 for Von Braun City on the Moon. As the electrician and his family leave the apartment, they come face to face with two Federal Forces soldiers. The soldiers demand to search the man. When he appears nervous, the troops proceed to beat him senseless and deprive him of his family's last possessions. For him, the horror ends quickly, with a bullet to his brain. For his wife, an attractive woman, a much longer, much more bitter ordeal awaits…

Just another day in the life of Zum City, Side 3, in December, U.C. 0098.

Across Cislunar Space at Side 7, a press conference is being held at Reville Hall by General Manron Blackhead, a senior member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Earth Federation Forces. Media from across the Earth Sphere, some pro-Federation, others anti-Federation, pack tightly into the central vestibule of the hall to ply the general with questions. Earlier in the day, a similar scene had taken place in the same hall when General Bright Noah faced the press. The media wants to know: what do the Earth Federation Forces plan to do about the ISRLA and the Neo Zeon civil war brewing in the Outer Solar System?

Tom Jennings, a well known reporter for the pro-Federation _United World Media Corporation,_ asks General Blackhead, "General, what has the Earth Federation Government Security Council decided to do about the ISRLA?"

General Blackhead replies, "The troops of the Earth Federation Forces understand their responsibility in protecting the lives and property of the people of Earth and the space colonies. We plan to root out these terrorists and prevent them from causing harm to any of our people. To accomplish this, the Federal Forces will use all measures necessary."

"All?" pipes up Connie Walters, a journalist from the anti-Federation _Lunar Broadcasting Company (LBC)_, "Would that include that terrible violence that we've heard rumors about Federal Forces troops using against civilians at Side 3?"

"Connie, those rumors are pure rubbish," General Blackhead replies, clearly angry, "The Earth Federation Forces is an army of honorable, compassionate soldiers. Our people would never stoop to or tolerate such tactics."

As the mass of reporters press forth with a deluge of questions, General Blackhead pompously silences them with a bold statement, "The Earth Federation Forces will no longer tolerate the obscene savagery practiced by the ISRLA. The ISRLA are not freedom fighters, as they like to call themselves. They are terrorists, and will be dealt with according to the laws of the Earth Federation Government. Our enemy, however, is the terrorists, not the people of Side 3. The Earth Federation Government is sensitive to the needs of our Spacenoid brothers, and the Federation will help Side 3's citizens with all of its resources. Let me tell you that the Deliberative Assembly is discussing the possible lifting of the current economic embargo on Side 3. The loyal citizens of the Federation should rest assured that we…"

Off to one side of the hall, Captain Athena Ibaz leans against a window, looking upon the city of Green Oasis. General Blackhead's speech makes Athena feel sick. A Federal Forces officer herself, she cringes at the utter lies, the utter hypocrisy, and utter self-righteousness of Blackhead and his ilk. As disgusted as she is with Blackhead and the senior staff, Athena is most disgusted at herself: after all, it was she who wrote the text of the canned answers that Blackhead is now mouthing to the media. Athena has become good at spouting the Federation's lies, although she knows better than to believe in them.

Athena has been moody and easily irritable ever since she and the Centurion Team returned from their mission to Earth some ten days earlier. Alternately depressed and angry, Athena has had difficulty eating and sleeping since the mission's end. There has been a great amount of work to do following the team's return to Side 7: not only the usual documentation and debriefing after their extraordinary experiences on the mother planet, but also beginning the full-press PR and military operation against the ISRLA at Side 3. Consecutive twenty-four hour work shifts three days running have become a part of Athena's life recently. She is very fortunate to have had four hours to sleep the previous night, most of which unfortunately she spent tossing and turning in bed.

But Athena knows that ultimately, it is not any of these stresses that are so deeply affecting her. She had been trained to handle those.

It's the constant ache inside her heart that won't go away.

Despite her best efforts, Athena has not been able to put Hathaway Noah out of her mind. She closes her eyes, and sees his handsome young face there. In moments of silence, she still hears his voice…his easy laughter. Where could he be now?

Athena sighs, looking out the window of the great hall, trying to focus on something…anything else.

One of the journalists in the crowd surrounding General Blackhead, a tall, attractive blonde woman of approximately thirty-five years of age, breaks from the group as she spots Athena. She is Linda Ackerman, Editor-In-Chief of the staunchly anti-Federation _Cislunar Free Media._ Dressed in a professional pantsuit, Linda is every centimeter the tough, consummate investigative journalist.

Linda approaches Athena quietly and lays a gentle hand upon Athena's shoulder.

For an instant, Athena fails to recognize the woman. Then, a look of shocked delight emerges on Athena's pretty face.

"Dory? Oh, Dory, is it you?!" Athena whispers.

"I'm known to most as Linda Ackerman now, Your Highness," the woman replies, "but to you, I'll always be Dory."

"Dory!" Athena places her hands on the woman's shoulders fondly.

Dorinda Ischinda, known as "Dory" to her familiars, was once the Royal Chambermaiden to Duchess Minerva Zabi. Dory was essentially Duchess Minerva's nanny…responsible for the Duchess' meals, clothing, education, and entertainment. Those who wished for an audience with the Duchess, no matter how important or prominent, needed Dory's approval first. With the passing of Lady Cenna in U.C. 0081, Duchess Minerva became an orphan. It was Dory who mostly took over the day-to-day role of caretaker for the little Duchess.

As Athena and Dory regard each other in the great hall of the Earth Federation Forces at Side 7, fond memories flood back of bedtime stories, shared meals, games in sandboxes and on swings, learning to read and write at the early age of three, and learning to play Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin at age four.

It has been nearly ten years since Athena has seen Dory; she had long since given up her old friend and caretaker for dead.

Although General Blackhead has the rest of the pack of journalists rapt in his speech, Athena nevertheless realizes that the public vestibule of Reville Hall is not the appropriate venue for an emotional reunion with her long-lost friend and caretaker.

Athena takes Dory aside, "Let's go into my private office. We won't be disturbed there."

Athena guides Dory down the corridor into her spacious corner office in Reville Hall. After she locks the door, Athena embraces Dory with an affection she was unable to show back in the public vestibule.

"Dory," Athena smiles fondly at her old friend, "It's so good to see you again. After that day when Colonel Char took me away, I thought…"

Dory nods, returning Athena's smile warmly, "Your Highness, we were all so deeply worried after Colonel Char disappeared with you. Not long afterwards, the Federal Forces overran Side 3. I managed to find passage to Side 6…just barely. I was on the last shuttle out before the Federation took over."

Athena looks pained, "It must have been hard on you, Dory. On all of you."

"It must have been harder on you, Your Highness," Dory says, "Until that day, you had never left our care. Then, to be whisked away so suddenly and violently…"

"Colonel Char took good care of me," Athena assures Dory, "The next several years were peaceful."

"Mine weren't," Dory returns, with an edge of anger in her voice, "For a time, I considered settling down peacefully at Side 6, but I couldn't bear to see our people suffer under the Federation's oppression. When Dr. Artasia Daikun announced the formation of the ISR in 0094, I answered the call."

"Cigarette?" Athena offers to her old friend and childhood caretaker, a fresh cigarette already loaded between Athena's lips.

Dory declines. She is not a smoker. Tobacco disgusts her. As when she was the Royal Chambermaid, Dory sees smoking as a vice of the morally corrupt – a vice that weakens the soul as well as the body. Dory views the cigarette lodged between Athena's lips with distaste and disapprobation.

_She's farther gone than I imagined_, Dory reflects. Whatever happened to the demure little Duchess she had once doted upon?

"I was never much of a soldier," Dory continues, "but as you probably remember, one of my duties as Royal Chambermaid was composing official Royal Correspondence. During my years at Side 6, I earned a journalism degree. When I joined the ISR, Dr. Artasia put me in charge of media operations. I took the name Linda Ackerman, and within a year, founded the _Cislunar Free Media._"

Athena lights her cigarette and inhales deeply from it before replying, "I've read many of your articles, though I had no idea it had been you who was writing them. They were excellent."

Dory says nothing in response to her former mistress' praise, "My work as an investigative reporter led me to many shocking discoveries. I've learned things about the Earth Federation Government that have shocked me. That would shock anyone with any sense of human decency. Inconceivable atrocities. But the single most shocking thing I've ever uncovered is that Your Highness, Duchess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon, Sovereign of the Zeon People, had become 'Captain Athena Ibaz' of the Earth Federation Special Forces.'"

Athena exhales a lungful of smoke before replying, "What's so shocking? Everyone needs a career, Dory."

"And your career choice," Dory says bitterly, "was to whore yourself to the Earth Federation Forces?"

Athena stares impassively at Dory, working through her cigarette, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Look at you!" Dory says contemptuously, "Have you forgotten who you are?! How can you serve the Federation to oppress our people?! My God, what's happened to you, Minerva?!"

Athena turns away from Dory, leaning her hands upon her desk, "Don't call me that. I'm not Minerva Zabi anymore. There is no more Minerva Zabi. Minerva died years ago with the evil that was the Archduchy of Zeon."

"Stop kidding yourself!" Dory demands, "You've sold yourself out! Worse, you've sold your people out! How can you serve those who have destroyed Zeon?! Who've hurt our people in every way?!"

"What would you have me do?" Athena replies, "Lead the Zeon people on another mad crusade…like my grandfather and my father did? How many more people need to die, Dory, before we learn anything?!"

"I've learned," Dory returns, "that justice and freedom must be fought for. I fight the good fight, and I can look in the mirror every morning and respect the person I see there."

Wagging an accusatory finger at Athena, Dory continues, "Can you do the same, Minerva? You were supposed to be the leader of the Zeon people…but you're nothing more than a coward and a running dog of the Federation!"

"That's enough, Dory!" Athena snaps, with an authoritative air that Dory remembers from when the Duchess Minerva ruled an empire of billions.

"Your family would have been ashamed of you," Dory adds acerbically.

Athena replies, "Ashamed of me? What about the shame I carry in their name? My family was responsible for the deaths of billions, Dory…and I'm supposed to be 'ashamed' to not follow in their footsteps?"

"You can turn your back on your family heritage," Dory persists, "but can you so easily turn your back on the Zeon people? Can you sleep at night knowing that the Federation treats them like animals? And that you're a part of that inhumane Federation?"

"This conversation is getting us nowhere, Dory," Athena says finally.

"I'm beginning to see that, Your Highness," Dory says, venom in her voice, "or should I call you 'Captain Ibaz?' I also see that it was a mistake for me to seek you out here. Maybe you're right: maybe Duchess Minerva is dead, after all."

So saying, Dory storms out of Athena's office. She literally bumps into 2Lt Jolie Minh, who is just entering, nearly knocking the pretty teenaged Centurion Team junior executive officer down.

Dory shoves Jolie aside roughly as she exits the office.

"Hey!" Jolie complains angrily, her delicate hands tensing into fists, "What's your problem?! Come back here and…!"

"Jolie!" Athena says in a tone of voice that Jolie has come to recognize as _Don't do what I know you're about to do, or else…_

"Who the hell was that?!" Jolie demands, "What a rude bitch!"

"What do you want, Jolie?" says Athena, getting straight to the point, in no mood for another argument.

"Colonel Cairlay told me to remind you that there's a Special Forces officer's meeting tonight," Jolie says, "He wants both of us there at 21:00."

"I know," Athena says, "We're going to discuss the details of the Side 3 Operation."

Jolie notices the sullen expression on her commanding officer's face, "What's wrong? You look a little teed off."

"Nothing," Athena says, offering Jolie a cigarette, lighting it for her friend, then lighting a fresh one of her own, "Just very busy. That 'rude' lady, by the way, was Linda Ackerman, Editor-In-Chief for the _Cislunar Free Media._"

"CFM?" Jolie replies, "Isn't that the same media company that Hathaway works for? Ooooh…sorry."

During their return to Side 7 from Earth, Athena had asked Jolie to promise not to discuss Hathaway with her again. Until this slip, Jolie has been good on her word.

"I'm really sorry," Jolie repeats, "I didn't mean to…"

"Forget it," Athena says, "Ms. Ackerman wanted an insider's scoop on the Federation's plans for Side 3. Naturally, I told her nothing."

"How about telling _me_ something, then?" Jolie says, placing her cigarette in Athena's ashtray and sitting on the guest couch in Athena's office, drawing her knees to her chest, "Just what are we supposed to do at Side 3, anyway?"

"Restore some semblance of order there," Athena says, "Hopefully by convincing the people there that we're not their enemies."

"Mission Impossible," Jolie sighs, "Does the High Command think we're miracle workers or something?"

Athena offers a wry grin, "Something like that, yes."

"The PR attack will be as important, perhaps even more important, than the military attack," Captain Athena Ibaz tells the group of Special Forces officers also assigned to the Side 3 Operation, "We need to win the psychological and political struggle against the ISRLA at Side 3, or we're going to be in an even worse position there than we are now. Naturally, this is easier said than done: the people of Side 3 really don't have much reason to trust us."

"It's going to be an uphill battle for certain," Colonel Cairlay remarks, "Do you think your plan of hiring more people from Zum City to work for the Federal Forces will work, Athena?"

"The economy at Side 3 has been a basket-case for years," Athena says, "Poverty is probably Side 3's biggest enemy after the Federation…with the embargo in place and all."

"Aren't we risking our security even more by hiring Side 3 civilians to work for the Federation?" asks Captain Angelica de Gades of Olympian Team.

"We're not hiring them maintain our mobile suits or battleships," Athena says, "We're basically giving them a chance to restore the basic livability of their home. The domestic electrical, water, transportation, and communications infrastructure of Side 3 is a mess. If we give the people of Side 3 a chance to fix these problems…to help them fix it, they'll be less inclined to hate the Federation and support the ISRLA."

"I think this plan of yours gives way too much to those Zekes,'" Captain Koichi Sato remarks, using a popular Earth slur in reference to the Zeon people, "Why are the Special Forces playing social worker with them? We ought to just go in with force, teach those Zekes a lesson they'll never forget."

Athena bares her teeth angrily at her fellow Special Forces team commander, "Those people are angry, Sato. They're angry because they're hungry, hurt, and scared, and they understand that it's because of the Federation that they're in their predicament. As long as they feel that way about the Federation, no 'lesson' will ever convince them to stop fighting us."

"Both of you make good points," Colonel Cairlay cuts in diplomatically, defusing the argument building among his Special Forces commanders, "At this juncture, I think we'll give Captain Ibaz's plan a chance. Perhaps it might achieve the results we're looking for. But Athena: if we don't begin seeing results within a reasonable amount of time, we might be forced to pursue a more direct, more aggressive course."

"It will take time," Athena concedes, "but I do believe that my plan will succeed."

"All right, then," Colonel Cairlay says, "It's decided then. Those of you assigned to the operation will deploy to Side 3 in two days. We anticipate that you'll be there for at least a month before your brother units will relieve you."

The Special Forces officers rise and salute as one, "Yes, sir."

An hour later, Athena is hard at work in her office, drafting up the second and third phases of her plan to counter the ISRLA's growing influence and support at Side 3. Wracking her formidable brain, Athena draws upon numerous different historical propaganda and public relations techniques from throughout history…and upon her personal experiences learning from Lady Haman Khan and Colonel Char Aznable. Even the methods of her grandfather Archduke Degin Zabi and her uncle Prince Giren Zabi are, selectively and subtly, brought into play.

Athena is deep in thought, wiping her hands with her handkerchief, when her desk phone rings.

"This is Captain Athena Ibaz," Athena answers.

"Hey, 'Thena!" Jolie's voice comes through the phone, "The squad's going to the Andromeda Nightclub tonight, like we talked about yesterday. You coming?"

Athena sighs, "No, I've got work to do. You guys have fun, all right?"

"Oh, come on, 'Thena!" Jolie protests, "You need to go and have some fun, especially since you've been under so much pressure and so depressed lately. We're gonna be at Side 3 for God knows how long starting the day after tomorrow, and there's no night life over there!"

'What time, then?" Athena says, mostly to get Jolie off her back.

Jolie says, "20:00, Andromeda Nightclub. On Ahrgama Boulevard. Next to the..."

"I know where it is," Athena replies, "I'll see you guys there."

Athena hangs up the phone. Suddenly, Dory's words return to haunt her.

_You're nothing more than a coward and a running dog of the Federation!_

Athena sighs. In some ways, Dory is right. Athena _is_ a coward. She doesn't have the courage to face up to her past and her family's dark legacy. She doesn't have the courage to face her love for Hathaway. She doesn't have the courage to face the fact that perhaps despite her efforts, she won't be able to change the world for the better.

Athena smiles bitterly as a random thought momentarily enters her mind: she considers walking away from it all, putting her life saving's into a tobacco or coffee plantation somewhere, or perhaps a vineyard cultivating grapes for fine wine, and just quietly living the rest of her life as the owner of a farming enterprise.

_Athena the Agriculturalist,_ she thinks, causing herself to laugh slightly.

Athena stands up and draws open the blinds of her office, looking outside of Reville Hall to the climate-controlled environment of Green Oasis City. In the space colonies, weather patterns are artificially controlled and predictably temperate. The colony management council would occasionally schedule a gentle rain shower to help the colony's inhabitants feel as if they are living in the natural environment of Earth, but typically, nothing more elaborate than that.

_On Earth, it's snowing in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere now,_ Athena reflects.

Athena sighs, remembering snowy days weeks past that feel as if they occurred in a different lifetime.

_Where are you, Hathaway? Do you still think of me? Or have you forgotten?_

Across space at Side 6, Hathaway Noah lies dejectedly on the bed space he occupies at a local YMCA. He has requested and received permission for an extended leave from his job with the _Cislunar Free Media_, and from the ISRLA as Mafty.

Hathaway closes his eyes and attempts to rest, but his mind and heart are haunted by images of Athena Ibaz. Sleep has eluded him for weeks.

Realizing that sleep is futile, Hathaway bolts out of bed and leaves the YMCA for a late night walk. It is quiet at this hour, as the colony is in a nighttime cycle.

Making his way to one of the enormous colony observation windows (hundreds of meters tall and wide), Hathaway looks out across the endless cosmos, its field of glittering stars. Somewhere out there is Side 7, and in one of its colonies, Green Oasis 1, is Athena.

_Athena,_ Hathaway reflects bitterly, tears welling in his dark eyes, _Do you know how I miss you? How I wish I could hold you in my arms again? You saved me from myself, Athena, but what good is that if I can't be with you?_

Hathaway sits upon the ground, burying his face between his knees. Somehow, some way, he would be together with Athena again.

"I promise you, Athena," Hathaway says softly, "I promise you we'll be together someday."

At the Andromeda Nightclub on Ahrgama Boulevard in Green Oasis City, Side 7, the members of the Centurion Team are variously drinking, dancing, joking with one another, and otherwise enjoying themselves. The activity seems to center around the very gregarious 2Lt. Jolie Minh, who sassily dismisses the flirting attempts of her team's male members.

The team is celebrating Jolie's spectacular achievement of having defeated the pilot now confirmed as the infamous "White Wolf," Colonel Shin Matsunaga, formerly of the Archduchy of Zeon. Matsunaga has been a fearsome thorn in the side of the Federal Forces for the better part of twenty years, and even the legendary Federation ace pilot Amuro Ray had not been able to conclusively defeat Matsunaga and end the menace of the White Wolf. That Jolie has now done so has escalated her already burgeoning profile to living legend status.

"Hic-cup," an obviously drunk Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe offers, before continuing with, "Another toast for the cutest lieutenant in the Earth Federation Forces…who saved my arse back on Earth!"

"To Jolie!" the team raises their glasses of wine and beer in unison to their pretty ace pilot.

"Thanks, guys!" Jolie enthuses, returning the toast with her own mug of beer. She can't quite drain it in a single gulp…not even half of it, in fact, but is able to offer up a rather slight little burp that amuses her teammates.

"Heh-hiccup," Geoff says, "Still just a little girl after all. Tough little girl, but little girl nonetheless."

Jolie elbows Geoff playfully, "Watch it, Sutcliffe. Piss me off and I'll just let the Zekes carve you up next time!"

"That's telling him, Jolie!" Sgt. Tomo Higashi enthuses.

Even the normally stoic Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said is amused, "Sutcliffe's skills with the ladies are almost as bad as his skills with his mobile suit. Don't expect Lt. Minh to bail you out of the former, though."

Cpl. Anna Horowitz adds, "Geoff only flirts with the pretty girls. Guess there's no hope for Plain Janes like me, huh Geoff?"

In truth, the bespectacled and somewhat bookish-looking Anna Horowitz is not an unattractive young woman in her own right, although her studious good looks do pale in comparison to Athena's refined elegance and Jolie's foxy teenaged appeal.

"Aw, don't say that, Luv," Geoff says, now flirting with Anna, "I think yer' all babes. You and the lieutenant and the captain."

"That's 'cause you're blind, Geoff," Anna says, causing everyone to laugh, "How can you compare me to Jolie and Athena?"

"You watch our backs out there, Anna," Tomo adds fairly, "That makes you beautiful in my book."

Anna raises her wine glass to toast the gunnery sergeant, "My thanks, Sergeant."

Athena has sat quietly listening to her teammates and smiling at their remarks, but hasn't said anything all evening, silently smoking cigarettes and drinking wine.

Jolie has noticed, and turns away from the team's merrymaking conversation for a moment to check on her friend, "Hey, 'Thena. You OK? You've been sitting there all night and haven't said a word."

Athena glances at Jolie with a blank expression, butts out her cigarette in an ashtray, and takes a sip from her wine glass, "I'm all right. Just tired."

"Come on," Jolie encourages, "Relax. Loosen up."

"Cheers," Athena toasts Jolie, but somewhat halfheartedly.

At 22:00, one of the club's resident singers takes the stage, seating himself on a stool under a singular spotlight. During this hour, the nightclub typically features singers of mellow ballads, to get the crowd in the mood for slow dancing.

The singer, a studious-looking young man who is likely a college student when he isn't performing at the Andromeda Lounge, picks up his acoustic guitar and says, "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Max Langham. Let me help you get into a romantic mood for the evening with a few old love songs."

Max plucks a gentle tune from the late 20th Century, a song by a singer of that time named Jewel Kilcher.

_I hear the clock, it's six a.m.  
I feel so far from where I've been  
I got my eggs and my pancakes too  
I got my maple syrup, everything but you.  
I break the yolks, make a smiley face  
I kinda like it in my brand new place  
I wipe the spots off the mirror  
Don't leave the keys in the door  
Never put wet towels on the floor anymore' cause  
Dreams last for so long  
even after you're gone  
I know you love me  
And soon you will see  
You were meant for me  
And I was meant for you.  
I called my momma, she was out for a walk  
Consoled a cup of coffee but it didn't wanna talk  
So I picked up a paper, it was more bad news  
More hearts being broken or people being used  
Put on my coat in the pouring rain  
I saw a movie it just wasn't the same  
'Cause it was happy and I was sad  
It made me miss you oh so bad 'cause  
Dreams last for so long  
Even after you're gone  
I know you love me  
And soon you will see  
You were meant for me  
And I was meant for you.  
I go about my business, I'm doin fine  
Besides what would I say if I had you on the line  
Same old story, not much to say  
Hearts are broken, everyday.  
I brush my teeth and put the cap back on  
I know you hate it when I leave the light on  
I pick a book up. Turn the sheets down.  
Take a deep breath and a good look around  
Put on my pjs and hop into bed  
I'm half alive but I feel mostly dead  
I try and tell myself it'll be all right  
I just shouldn't think anymore tonight 'cause  
Dreams last for so long  
Even after you're gone  
I know you love me  
And soon I know you will see  
You were meant for me  
And I was meant for you _

Yeah... You were meant for me and I was meant for you. 

The Centurion Team applauds loudly as Max finishes his song, except for Athena, who looks a bit bleary eyed behind her cigarette and glass of wine.

"Sing us another!" Jolie demands, signaling for the bartender to give Max a drink.

Max plays another tune from the 20th Century, this one dating to the decade of the 1970s, a song first performed by a Canadian singer named Dan Hill over two-hundred years ago:  
_  
You ask me if I love you  
And I choke on my reply  
I'd rather hurt you honestly  
Than mislead you with a lie  
And who am I to judge you  
On what you say or do?  
I'm only just beginning to see the real you _

And sometimes when we touch  
The honesty's too much  
And I have to close my eyes and hide  
I wanna hold you til I die  
Til we both break down and cry  
I wanna hold you till the fear in me subsides

Romance and all its strategy  
Leaves me battling with my pride  
But through the insecurity  
Some tenderness survives  
I'm just another writer  
Still trapped within my truth  
A hesitant prize fighter  
Still trapped within my youth

And sometimes when we touch  
The honesty's too much  
And I have to close my eyes and hide  
I wanna hold you til I die  
Til we both break down and cry  
I wanna hold you till the fear in me subsides

At times I'd like to break you  
And drive you to your knees  
At times I'd like to break through  
And hold you endlessly

At times I understand you  
And I know how hard you've tried  
I've watched while love commands you  
And I've watched love pass you by

At times I think we're drifters  
Still searching for a friend  
A brother or a sister  
But then the passion flares again

And sometimes when we touch  
The honesty's too much  
And I have to close my eyes and hide  
I wanna hold you til I die  
Til we both break down and cry  
I wanna hold you till the fear in me subsides  


Athena can't take it anymore. Stubbing out her last cigarette and finishing her glass of wine, the Centurion Team Leader stands up and tells her team, "Get back to the base by 01:00 at the latest," before she goes to the lobby, retrieves her officer's hat and overcoat, puts these articles on, and leaves.

Jolie chases after, "Hey, 'Thena!"

Jolie catches her friend just after Athena steps out of the Andromeda Nightclub, "Hey, are you sure you're all right?"

"Yes," says Athena coldly.

"Where are you going?" Jolie asks.

"Home," Athena says, walking away, not even certain what that term means for her anymore.

Jolie rolls her eyes and shakes her head. Sometimes, Athena is just _hopeless_.

At Side 3, a squad of Earth Federation Forces GM-IV mobile suits flies by the colony cylinders on routine patrol.

"Patrol Squadron Hawkwind to base," reports 1Lt. Douglas Riordan, leader of Patrol Squadron Hawkwind, "All quiet out here in Sector G8."

"Roger, Hawkwind," replies an officer at the base, "Continue your patrol in Sectors G9-15."

"Roger, base…we're…AHH!"

A loud burst of static, followed by an eerie silence.

"Patrol Squadron Hawkwind?" the tech at the Federal Forces' base in Zum City calls into his transceiver, "Hawkwind, acknowledge. This is Federal Base Zum to Patrol Squadron Hawkwind. 1Lt. Riordan, do you copy?"

"What is it, Chief?" asks Major Dieter Koschmider, one of the senior officers on the base.

The tech, Chief Warrant Officer Stacy Huang, replies, "Sir, Patrol Squadron Hawkwind just disappeared off our scopes."

"You can do better than that, Chief," Koschmider replies, "Reestablish contact with Patrol Hawkwind. Failing that, determine what's going on with them."

"Yes, sir," replies Chief Huang, turning to her task.

But Patrol Squadron Hawkwind – 1Lt. Doug Riordan and the five mobile suit pilots under his command, will never again acknowledge any earthly communications. The pilots are dead, and their wrecked mobile suits float listlessly in space.

Nearby, an all-black MSN-04R Sazabi MK-II mobile suit reholsters its smoking beam rifle and vectors away.

In the cockpit of the Sazabi MK-II is Colonel Braniff Oskar, statistically the deadliest mobile suit ace of the One Year War.

Nearly twenty years ago, Colonel Braniff Oskar was among the most feared mobile suit pilots in the Archduchy of Zeon. Colonel Char Aznable, the Red Comet, was more flamboyant. Colonel Shin Matsunaga, the White Wolf, was more brutal. The Triple Black Star Team of Gaia, Ortega, and Mash were more dazzling. No one, however, on either the Zeon or Federation side was as deadly efficient as Braniff Oskar, who had never missed a target during his entire military career. No other mobile suit pilot in history…not Aznable, not Matsunaga, not the Federation's Amuro Ray, could make that claim.

Most ace mobile suit pilots are known for their flamboyant personalities. Colonel Char had always been known for his favoring of red clothing and red mobile suits, and hiding his handsome face behind masks (all while currying favor with women ranging from Princess Kycilia Zabi to the Newtype Lalah Sun). Colonel Matsunaga had been known for his tastes for wine, women, and song (and his friendship with Prince Dozle Zabi). The Triple Black Stars were known for their tight fraternal bond and deep loyalty.

But Braniff Oskar is a mystery, even to those whom he serves.

Tall and gaunt, his graying hair slicked back to reveal a widow's peak, very little is known about Oskar's past. He had quietly emerged from the Archduchy of Zeon's Royal Academy during the early U.C. 0070s, and his brilliance as a mobile suit pilot was not discovered until the One Year War began at the end of that decade. By war's end, he had shot down over three-hundred Federation mobile suits and over thirty battleships, making him statistically the most accomplished mobile suit ace of the One Year War.

Despite his singular accomplishment, Oskar has been somewhat overlooked compared to his more flamboyant rivals. Oskar's quiet, reclusive persona has drawn less attention from the media and war history scholars than the lives and careers of his colleagues.

For some, however, this has only added to Oskar's mystique. Oskar might lack the flair of a Char Aznable or a Shin Matsunaga, but his sheer, cold-blooded efficiency cannot be disputed.

In the twenty years since the end of the One Year War, Braniff Oskar, like many veterans who survived that war, has made his services available to those who have a need for an ace mobile suit combat pilot. Unlike most others, however, Oskar is not a soldier of fortune. He stubbornly refuses to accept monetary compensation for his work. Instead, he takes assignments based on whether or not they interest him, although precisely what does or would interest Oskar, no one but the man himself can be certain

Colonel Braniff Oskar lands the Sazabi MK-II in the dock of a heavily damaged, long abandoned Side 3 colony. Once a farming community, the Side 3 colony known as "Agricola" is now home only to rats…literal and figurative.

Oskar disembarks from the Sazabi MK-II and he is greeted by a figure in the shadows. The figure's voice, kept low, is vaguely familiar.

"Colonel Oskar," the voice says, "Thank you for accepting this assignment. It is indeed an honor to have the services of the famous One Strike Killer."

Oskar smiles enigmatically, and says nothing.

"Your orders are contained here," the figure says, handing a Datapad to Oskar, "The objective is more political than military, so I hope you will proceed as such."

Oskar nods.

"Do you have any further questions?" the figure asks.

Oskar shakes his head.

"Don't worry about whom you might to take down in the process," the figure finally says, "They're valuable assets, but even they are expendable. If necessary, they can be sacrificed in the name of the objective."

To that, Oskar says, as usual, nothing. He simply notes the information and moves on. He knows his objective, and will act upon it when the time is right.

_A fiery explosion rocks Zum City, killing thousands in an instant. A second explosion immolates homes, schools, churches, and parks in a heartbeat. Men, women, children…their bodies torn, their souls extinguished, drift into the cold of outer space_

Captain Athena Ibaz bolts upright in her bed, barely suppressing a scream.

Athena pants rapidly, her forehead covered in perspiration. Another nightmare.

Athena covers her face with her hands, shaking her head. Every night has been like this for her during the past few weeks. She has seen a military physician about the problem, but the physician could find nothing wrong with her, at least physically. A military psychologist to whom Athena was referred concluded only what Athena already knew: that she's been under a great amount of stress.

Athena sighs and looks at the clock on nightstand: 03:48, a little over half an hour before reveille would be called.

Realizing that it's futile to try to get back to sleep, Athena slips out of bed. Her nightshirt is soaking wet with her perspiration.

Athena takes a seat on the couch in her private quarters, drawing a cigarette from a compact container and lighting it.

Athena hears Dory's disembodied voice in her head, _Can you sleep at night knowing that the Federation treats them like animals?_

Athena rises from the couch and steps over to a mirror hanging on one of her room's walls. She examines herself closely in the mirror, _So who am I really? Am I Duchess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon? Or am I Captain Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Forces?_

Athena has long prided herself on her ability to keep a calm, steady mind through the worst of circumstances. Therefore, it irritates her that ever since the mission to Earth, she has been feeling as if she is slowly losing her mind.

At a loss to take control of her own life, Athena decides to at least fulfill her responsibilities to the one she agreed to look after. Going into Jolie's quarters, Athena notices that the pretty teenager has thrown off her covers, as always.

_Just a child_, Athena thinks to herself, _and I'm only three years older than her. Can I protect her dreams? Will I let her down as I let down so many hundreds of millions?_

Athena sighs and fixes Jolie's covers, smiling fondly upon her protégé. The teenager breathes softly as she sleeps, a gentle sound that soothes Athena's raw nerves.

Jolie has made Athena's life much less lonely. Despite their differences and occasional arguments, Athena has come to greatly value Jolie's friendship. Their bond is as tight as any biological sisters'…maybe even more so, forged as it was in the din and clamor of combat. If Athena can ensure nothing else, she hopes to ensure that Jolie will live a long, long time…perhaps even long enough to become somebody's wife…and somebody's mother.

Yet another pang of guilt in Athena's soul.

_I dragged the kid into this war,_ Athena reflects, _Will I be able to live with myself if something happens to her? Or what if I get killed in combat and have to leave her behind to take over my responsibilities? What then?_

Jolie opens her eyes, surprised to see Athena sitting there, "What th…? Is it time for reveille already?"

"No," Athena replies, "there's still thirty minutes. Why don't you get some more sleep?"

Jolie sits up, "I doubt you just happened to walk into my room for nothing. Another sleepless night?"

"Yes," Athena admits, "Another night of nightmares."

"'Thena," Jolie says, "Not even you can control everything. Sometimes fate controls us. You've got to let go of things you can't control."

"I don't believe in fate," Athena says, "I see chaos, and my instinct is to impose order on it."

Not sure what all that means, Jolie says, "You need to let yourself be a woman. You're not a mobile suit, Athena. You keep driving yourself the way you do and you're gonna go nuts someday."

"You're probably right," Athena confesses, "You've been right about a good many things: there probably are some things you could teach me."

"I've learned a lot from you," Jolie tells Athena, "You've been really good to me, 'Thena. You took a lonely, angry kid off the streets of that nowhere place Industria and gave her a family to belong to. I'll never forget it. I'll always be here for you, whatever happens."

The two friends embrace each other affectionately. Neither Athena's strategic genius nor Jolie's near superlative fighting prowess represents their greatest strength, which is the strength of their friendship. If nothing else, they could always count on that.

Some three days later, the Centurion Team and three other Special Forces units arrive at Side 3's capital, Zum City, aboard the mobile suit carrier _Wygan_. The Special Forces have brought their mobile suits with them, although their plans do not call for them to use the mecha. The battle this time is more political than military, and will be won with canny understanding of psychology and ability to communicate effectively than skill with a beam rifle or beam saber.

As they ride the Ele-car from the spaceport down into the city, Athena and Jolie take in the view of the former capital of the Republic of Zeon and the Archduchy of Zeon. Once considered the jewel of all space colonies, Zum City is now a disaster area.

"What a dump," Jolie remarks, "This place is almost as bad as Industria."

"This is what happens in a state of perpetual war," Athena remarks, "These people have been forced to endure more than is humane."

"I feel sorry for them," Jolie says sadly.

"Oh?" Athena says, surprised, "I thought you hated the Zeon."

Jolie shakes her head, "I don't hate all Zeons. I'm a Spacenoid too, remember? I hate Alexander Miguel, that pig who killed my family and destroyed my home, and I hate the Zabi Family who started all this and caused so many people to die."

Athena puts an arm around Jolie's shoulders, "My apologies. You're much more grown up than I thought you were."

Jolie grins, "After hanging out with you all this time, it was bound to rub off on me at least some. But, 'Thena, tell me something: do you really think we can help these people?"

Athena looks at the sprawling ruin of the once beautiful city of her birth, "That's the plan. The people here must be made to understand that we mean them no harm…that we're here to help put things right again."

"You think they'll accept us?" Jolie asks.

Athena replies matter-of-factly, "Therein lies the challenge."

Back at Side 7, General Manron Blackhead has Colonel Peter Cairlay in his office for a private meeting. Notably absent is General Bright Noah, whom Blackhead and Cairlay have decided to not invite to this meeting.

"I certainly hope Ibaz can handle this assignment," Blackhead says to Cairlay, "She's a bright girl, but I think she's bitten off more than she can chew this time."

"She's idealistic and naïve," Cairlay agrees, "She really believes that by 'killing them with kindess,' we can win over the people of Side 3."

"It's better than those Zeke pigs deserve," Blackhead says darkly, "But on the off-chance that it works, it could be cost effective. Food, medicine, and minimum wage cost less than mobile suits do. It's the only reason I agreed to sign off on this plan."

Cairlay reminds the general, "If Athena's plan fails, we always have our second option."

Blackhead nods, "So he was really willing to assist us, huh? Unbelievable. Any idea why?"

Cairlay replies, "No, sir. With this particular individual, one can never really understand why."

Blackhead sighs, "I suppose it doesn't matter as long as he does what we need him to do."

The general looks at the profile of Colonel Braniff Oskar on his personal computer. There is very little information there. Oskar is a maddening conundrum.

"The first order of business is to restore electricity, water, and communications services," Athena tells the crowd of Zum City citizens gathered around her at the park surrounding Zum Palace, the once magnificent residence of the Zabi Royal Family, where Athena was born nineteen years earlier, "Many of the facilities here in Zum City have not functioned for nearly twenty years, and we'd like your help to get these systems online and working again."

"Why are you here?" an old man asks, mistrust in his voice, "Why are you doing this? Why now?"

Athena says gently and candidly, "The Earth Federation Government is looking to end its occupation of Side 3, but to do that, it must first make sure that Side 3 is self-sufficient and secure again. We need your help to make your home livable again."

The crowd, which numbers in the hundreds of people, young and old, begins mumbling themselves.

Athena adds, "The Federation is prepared to pay fair wages to anyone willing to work, including bonuses for those who contribute the most. You'll have a say in setting the priorities through our new citizens outreach council, and we'll be available to lend you any assistance you need. Our mobile suits are here to help with the heavy industrial work until proper hydrosuits can be brought in from Anman and Von Braun. Benefits will continue to those who are unable to work."

After nearly twenty years of abusive rule by the Earth Federation Government, the people of Side 3 have learned to distrust the Federation's representatives, especially its soldiers, but there is something reassuring, trustworthy, and strangely familiar about this pretty young Federal Forces officer now addressing them. Side 3's people are accustomed to dealing with ugly, thuggish Federal troops barking orders at them from behind weaponry. For the first time, they feel that there is someone in the Earth Federation Forces they can identify with and trust…a real human being as opposed to a bureaucrat or a thug.

Summoning her newfound courage, an old woman steps forward and says to Athena, "We need food. We have not received any supplies in ten days, and my grandchildren are hungry."

Athena replies, "We're doing something about that right now, ma'am. My people are escorting a supply vessel into the spacedock at this very moment. You and your family will have a fresh, hot meal within ninety minutes, Mrs…."

The citizens of Side 3 know better than to give out their names to Federal authorities, but the old woman somehow feels that she can trust Athena. Usually, the woman is afraid to ask the Federal authorities for anything, and when she does gather the courage her do so, she is invariably either ignored or answered with demeaning obscenities. This young woman, Captain Ibaz, however, has actually promised to deliver aid to them very shortly.

"Nakamura," the old woman says.

"Mrs. Nakamura," Athena smiles a friendly smile, "How many grandchildren do you have?"

"Three," Mrs. Nakamura answers, "the youngest born only a month ago. My son works for a courier service, and my daughter-in-law is a teacher, although her health has been too poor for her to work since she gave birth."

Athena nods sympathetically, "I'll order a military medic to visit your home later today. Would it be all right if you let me know where you live?"

Mrs. Nakamura regards Athena nervously for a moment, then decides that she can trust the pretty Special Forces officer. She writes down the address of her home for Athena.

Athena turns to the rest of the crowd, "We're going to be signing up people for work and relief services right away. Please form lines along the central mall of the park."

To everyone's surprise, the citizens of Zum City begin lining up in an orderly fashion as Athena orders.

_I wonder if they'd still listen to me if they knew who I really am,_ Athena thinks.

"I can't believe it," Sergeant Donald Gifford says of the Federal Forces Military Police, "They're actually listening to you. When we order them to do stuff, they act like they don't hear us!"

"That's because you don't know how to communicate with them," Athena says dryly.

Athena works the crowd, asking individual citizens about the problems they're facing and how they would like the Federal Forces to assist them. Athena listens attentively to their problems, and takes mental notes on possible ways to solve those problems.

_It's just a drop in the ocean,_ Athena reflects, _but it's a beginning…something that these people have needed for a long, long time._

Elsewhere in Zum City, Dr. Artasia Som Daikun (Sayla Mass), Kai Shiden, and Linda Ackerman (Dorinda Ischinda) meet to discuss the newest change of policy towards Side 3 by the Earth Federation Government, and its implications for the ISR movement.

"They're basically doing what we'd like to do," Kai says, "but don't have the resources to. They've begun organizing new work and relief programs…to repair the colony infrastructure. I'm almost beginning to think we should just let them."

"Yes," Sayla agrees, "The people of Side 3 are finally getting the help they've needed for decades. I'd call this a positive development, but it's so sudden…so unexpected."

Dory, now going by her adopted name of "Linda," adds, "As encouraging as this is, my instincts tell me that it's mostly propaganda, and that it won't last."

"I agree," says Kai, "The Federation has finally wised up. It's trying to outflank us in the P.R. game, and it's in a good position to do it because it's got resources we don't. They can sell the people jobs, money, relief. All we've got to offer is an ideology. The people can't eat or wear that."

"Both of you are making good points," Sayla concedes, "I find myself a bit suspicious of the Federation's motives as well. For now, I suggest we just watch and see what develops. If it turns out that there's a real change of thinking among the Federation's leaders, it might just be time to approach them diplomatically."

"That might be premature," Kai warns, "Even if the Federation is sincere, we'd still be dealing from a position of weakness."

"Further military activity would be taken as a provocation," Sayla replies, "which wouldn't be politically germane to us if the Federation gains the public perception that it is the party suing for peace."

The leaders of the Independent Spacenoid Republic Movement fall silent. For the moment, they have found themselves in a difficult political dilemma…one they hadn't anticipated.

Sayla breaks the silence by asking Linda, "Linda, did you say that the leader of this campaign is Duchess Minerva Zabi?"

"Yes," Linda replies ruefully, "Minerva has sold out her people, and now serves the Federation."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Linda," Sayla says, "My brother always did say that Minerva was an exceptionally intelligent young woman. Kai and I have been following her activities: she definitely has her own, separate agenda, and it's not necessarily the same as the Federation's."

Kai snorts, "Where Sayla I don't agree is what that agenda is. Sayla thinks it's benign. I think 'once a Zabi, always a Zabi.'"

_If only that were true,_ Linda sighs internally.

Kai continues, "I think she's a threat to us, whether she's sincerely helping the Federation or not. As you know, last month, she thwarted the plan to assassinate Bright Noah and Manron Blackhead…"

"A plan," Sayla cuts in with a reproving glare at Kai, "that wasn't brought to me for approval. Bright is our friend, Kai, and so is Mirai. Even though we're now on opposite sides politically, it doesn't justify the murder of friends."

"My mistake," Kai concedes, "But had it succeeded…"

"Count your blessings it didn't, Kai," Sayla says, "By all rights, I should have had you prosecuted for that."

"But you need me," Kai smiles slyly.

"Unfortunately, yes," Sayla returns the smile, but somewhat wryly, "Just like back on the _White Base_ in the old days, eh?"

Kai laughs, "Constantly defying orders. Getting thrown into the brig. Threatened with court martial. Same old routine after all these years."

Sensing that Linda is feeling a bit lost in the inside jokes about her and Kai's shared experiences as crew members of the Federation battle carrier _White Base_ during the One Year War, Sayla says, "Anyway, Linda, this is what we want you to do: try to work with Minerva. Ascertain that her intentions are benign and give her whatever support you can."

"You're asking me to trust the Federation, Sayla?" Linda asks.

"I'm asking you to work with Minerva," Sayla replies, "and at the same time, watch the Federation's moves carefully. If they're up to anything suspicious, the people will need to know about it."

"Right," Linda replies, understanding what Sayla is intimating.

"For now," Sayla says to Kai, "I recommend that we temporarily cease military operations on all fronts. Now that the Federation is casting itself in the role of angels, we can't respond by looking like the terrorists they like to portray us as."

Kai has misgivings about that plan, but ultimately agrees to it, "Very well. All ISRLA military operations are suspended for now. It's time to play the political game."

"Will you go to Earth to negotiate with the heads of the Earth Federation Government, Sayla?" Linda asks.

Sayla shakes her head, "It's too soon for that. For now, we'll just watch and wait."

Far, far away from Side 3, in the Asteroid Belt between Earth and Mars, Colonel Ross Davenport of the Principality of Phobos Zeon rushes to meet with General Alexander Miguel, _de facto_ ruler of the Principality.

Davenport finds Miguel in his spacious private office, contemplating the stars over a glass of brandy.

"It's late for you," Miguel remarks, "It couldn't have waited until morning?"

Davenport replies, "I could have, but you'll sleep much better knowing this. On the other hand, it might get you so excited that you can't sleep."

"Let's hear it then," Miguel replies, hating dramatic buildups.

"ISRLA activity at Side 3 has been suspended," Davenport says, "Rumor has it that the Federation might withdraw its garrison there."

Miguel's handsome face darkens, "You call that _good_ news, Ross?"

Davenport is surprised that his commander is displeased, "Isn't it? With both the Federation and the ISRLA withdrawing from Side 3, we can…"

"Your worldview is too simple, Ross," Miguel says, "They're playing a game that's one part chess, the other part poker. There might come a time when we can take advantage, but now isn't the time just yet. At present, our attention should be concentrated on the priority of eliminating our rivals here in the Asteroid Belt."

"Yes, sir," Davenport responds, disappointed by his lord's lack of enthusiasm for the developments back at the Zeon homeland.

"Any word on Jonah?" Miguel asks.

Davenport shakes his head ruefully, "No, sir. I'm sorry. He could be anywhere right now."

Alexander Miguel sighs, "Very well. Continue searching. My brother will fulfill his duty to the family name and to the Zeon people, regardless of his foolish pacifistic beliefs."

"Yes, sir," Davenport says again, leaving Miguel with his dark thoughts.

The next day at Side 3, the Centurion Team and other troops of the Earth Federation Forces are hard at work helping Side 3's citizens with the monumental task of restoring the space colony. No one is under the illusion that the undertaking will yield quick or easy dividends: restoring the devastated space colony to its pre-war glory and luster will take many years of hard work. Nevertheless, the sight of their home being restored after so many long years of neglect brings a much needed sense of hope to the people of Side 3. For the first time in a generation, the people of Side 3 can dare to look to the future with hope rather than fear. Already, electricity has been restored to 70 of Zum City, and Captain Athena Ibaz has promised that the city will have full electrical service restored before the week is over. Additionally, the city's water plant has been refurbished and for the first time in twenty years, the water of Zum City is safe to drink.

On one of the streets near the center of Zum City, Jolie is entertaining a group of children by juggling a half dozen apples.

"The key to juggling is you have to concentrate," Jolie tells the children, "you can't…"

A dog chases a cat past Jolie's feet, creating a small updraft that lifts her short uniform skirt. Jolie drops the apples to hold down her skirt and not give the children (about half of which are preadolescent boys) a view of her panties. The apples drop onto the street as Jolie squeaks in alarm.

The children begin to laugh in amused delight. Jolie, smiling even as she blushes in mild embarrassment, squats to pick up the apples and distribute them to the children. Unlike the rotten, worm-infested apples that had rolled onto this same street weeks earlier, these apples are fresh and wholesome. Athena has personally ensured that the food supplies transported to Side 3 from Anman and Von Braun on the moon are of good quality, not discarded leftovers.

"Hey, Jolie!" one of the children, a boy of nine says, "When are you gonna take us to see your mobile suit?"

"Yeah!" another child, a girl of seven, adds, "We wanna see your Gundam!"

"Are you gonna let us ride in the Gundam, Jolie?" a third child asks.

"I wanna drive the Gundam!" a fourth child declares loudly.

Athena approaches, an amused smile on her face as she watches Jolie being accosted by the children, "Making promises you can't keep, Lieutenant?"

Jolie says, "Who says I'm not gonna keep my promise? Um, unless you're not going to give me permission…"

"No rides," Athena says, "and if you're going to be a tour guide, be a responsible one and make sure these kids are safe while you're showing them the Centurion Gundam."

So saying, Athena leaves to see to her other duties.

"She's mean," one of the kids pipes up, referring to Athena.

"No," a little girl disagrees, "Miss Athena is really nice. My grandpa was sick and she brought medicine for him yesterday."

"But she won't let us ride the Gundam!" another kid interjects.

"She's not as cool as Jolie!" another boy adds.

"But things have gotten way better since Miss Athena became the boss here," yet another one of the children adds fairly, "Mommy says we might even be able to go to school soon!"

The thought of that sobers the children. In unison, they cry, "Oh, no! School!!!"

Jolie smiles at the children. They remind her of the kids she grew up with at Quebec Colony, not so many years ago. It's good to see their unbridled joy. The natural resilience and optimism of children has reemerged now that their home becomes less and less a war zone each day, and more and more like a living community again.

_It's because of Athena's leadership,_ Jolie realizes, _Athena said she'd change the world and make it better, and at least here, she's getting it done._

Jolie has found a new appreciation for Athena's commitment, and a better understanding of why Athena is so driven and serious. Even here, in the space of just a few days, Athena has made a world of difference to the people of Side 3. Although it is just a first step, it is the most that the people of this colony have ever seen done on their behalf by the Earth Federation Government. The people might still not trust the Federation, but they do trust Athena.

Jolie can understand. Like the people of Side 3, Jolie's life had been devastated by war, and she had to endure years of isolation and privation. Athena's guidance, and above all her generosity, made the difference in Jolie's life, just as they do for the people of Side 3 now.

Jolie doesn't quite know how to say it to her, but Athena is the person that Jolie has come to admire most in the world. Despite her talents as a mobile suit pilot and fighter, Jolie wishes she had Athena's intellect and sophistication…that ethereal charisma of a born leader.

_When I grow up_, Jolie thinks to herself with some amusement, _I wanna be just like Athena._

The thought actually makes Jolie laugh. Although she admires Athena, Jolie understands that she and Athena are different kinds of women, and that they are effective as a team because of their contrasts…each supplementing the other's weaknesses. It has kept both of them alive through peril after peril thus far, and maybe, just maybe it'll be enough for them to set off the universal changes that are necessary to ensure that the future is peaceful and happy for all of humanity, on Earth and in space.

But of course, it is a world that does not favor easy, equitable solutions, and the forces of strife and unrest would not yield easily.

Sometime later, Athena is in her temporary office located in the old Republic of Zeon Parliament Building. Athena notes with irony that the office probably once belonged to an official that served her family back in the days of the Archduchy.

"Captain Ibaz," an aide comes to the door, "There's a Linda Ackerman of the _Cislunar Free Media_ who's here to see you."

"Yes," Athena says, "I'm expecting her. Send her in, please."

The aide shows Dory (Linda) in. Athena closes and locks the office door so they can speak in private.

"Well, Dory?" Athena asks, putting a cigarette between her lips and lighting it.

"Read up," Dory says, handing the evening edition of the _Cislunar Daily Journal_ to Athena.

Athena reads the headline:

**EARTH FEDERATION GOVERNMENT INTRODUCES MASSIVE RECONSTRUCTION CAMPAIGN **

In a surprise move, Earth Federation Special Forces lead largest relief effort in Side 3 history. 

By

Linda Ackerman, Editor-In-Chief

_ZUM CITY – Side 3. The citizens of Side 3 often believe that they've seen it all during the past three decades. What calamity have they not seen that would cause them to doubt their senses? _

That is why they could hardly be blamed for their shock when suddenly, beginning last week and with no real explanation, the Earth Federation Forces transformed themselves from brutal oppressors to friendly and helpful benefactors, providing food, medicine, clothing, work, and assorted other essential services.

The Federal Forces have even dispatched their mobile suits to help restore the colony's basic infrastructure, which they had previously either actively destroyed or allowed to fall into atrophy and ruin.

The citizens of Side 3 are surprised by these developments, and not a few are delighted, but all have the same question: why?

Why this? Why now?

Many suspect that there is a political motive behind these sudden and drastic policy changes. In recent years, the Independent Spacenoid Republic movement has become the preeminent underground political entity at Side 3, advocating Spacenoid rights and the establishment of a new Spacenoid state at Side 3 independent of the Earth Federation Government. The Federation stands to gain from a decrease of ISR activity.

The leader of the Federation's new outreach to Side 3 is Captain Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Special Forces. Captain Ibaz, 19, who leads a unit known as the "Centurion Team," has… 

Athena puts down the newspaper, "This will be very helpful. Thank you, Dory."

Dory shrugs, "Don't thank me. It was Sayla…Dr. Daikun, who ordered me to give you all the support that I could from my position as the Editor In Chief of the CFM."

Athena says, "So do you still think I'm letting the people of Side 3 down? Do you still think I'm helping the Federation to oppress them?"

"I'm still not sure about you," Dory says frankly, "I still think your motives are a bit suspect. But there's no denying the positive difference you and your people have been making here. As long as you keep it up, I'm prepared to support it. If you slip up, though, the CFM will report it all over the Earth Sphere. You'll be stuck in a PR quagmire so deep you won't be able to dig out of it with a mobile suit."

Athena replies, "Just be fair and accurate, Dory. That's all I ask of you."

"Your Highn…Minerva," Dory says, "I really just don't understand. Why? If you still care about your people and your homeland, why are you serving with the Earth Federation Forces?"

"We need the Federation's resources," Athena says, "the One Year War depleted Side 3, and the occupations and the two Neo Zeon Wars sent Side 3 further into the abyss."

"So you expect the people of Zeon to beg the Federation for help like beggars?" Dory challenges, "You're underestimating the pride and the will of your people, Minerva. Any Zeon would rather starve than go down on bended knee to the arrogant worms who rule Earth Federation Government!"

"That's just the problem," Athena says soberly, "Too much damn pride. Too much damn resentment. What has it gotten our people in the past twenty years, Dory? Has it given them security? Has it given them peace? Has it given them this sacred 'independence' they supposedly want so badly? You saw them as clearly as I did: they were hungry, they were frightened, they were devoid of hope. I'm determined to bring these dark days to an end for them, and I'll do so through the power of the Federation if I have to."

Dory says, "I still think you're playing with fire, Minerva. The Federation can't be trusted. It's proven that more than enough times."

At some level, Athena knows that Dory is right, but she is also keen to remind her former Royal Chambermaid, "And neither can the Zabis…or anyone who believes in their genocidal ideology."

Athena and Dory eye each other silently. The ideological divide between them seems unbridgeable.

As she prepares to leave, Dory throws over her shoulder, "We'll be watching your every move carefully. Don't let us down."

Athena answers the challenge, "The people of Side 3 won't suffer anymore. I won't allow it."

Dory smirks, "You'd be in a better position to say that if you were still their Duchess."

Dory leaves.

Athena sits at her desk, pulls out her handkerchief, and wipes her hands with it…the invisible blood stains of billions she can never remove.

The following day, the Centurion Team is deployed in its mobile suits inside the Zum City colony…not to do combat with enemy mobile suits, but to replace the broken solar panels that supply the colony with both lighting and supplemental electrical power. Mobile suits designed to destroy and kill are today used to build and provide for a better way of living.

The Centurion Gundam holds a solar panel in place, then uses its beam saber to weld the panel to the colony's internal wall. A regular hydrosuit crew might need an hour to do the same job, but the high-powered Gundam mobile suit has completed the task in a fifth of the time.

Elsewhere, Athena uses the Cour De Leon to repair the colony's communications network relay located at the tip of the colony's outer shell. The restoration of this facility will allow Zum City to easily communicate with the rest of Cislunar Space once again.

Having completed her work, Athena transforms the Cour De Leon to Waverider configuration and returns to the inside of the Zum City colony via an access hatch.

Athena watches Jolie put on quite a show as she deftly guides the Centurion Gundam through the repair work. On the streets of the city, the children that Jolie had entertained by juggling apples a day or two earlier gape in youthful awe and fascination as Jolie uses the Centurion Gundam to restore light and energy to their home. Even the adults cannot help but be impressed.

Athena smiles as she lands the Cour De Leon in a nearby clearing. She is not going to chew Jolie out for showboating this time. If anything, Jolie is doing the morale of the city's people (and not just the kids) a great amount of good by showing that Federation soldiers can have a sense of fun in them as well.

_Something else Jolie can teach me,_ Athena realizes.

At 12:00, both the military personnel and civilians alike take a break for lunch.

Athena sits on the front steps of the Zum Royal Palace, stretching her aching muscles, cramped from too many hours spent inside the cockpit of a mobile suit. The results of the recent work have been very satisfying, but also very tiring. Athena is looking forward to a nice, long soak in a hot bathtub at the end of the day's work.

Athena cranes her neck to look back at the magnificent edifice behind her. Some nineteen years ago, Athena's mother Cenna gave birth to her within the majestic palace. Athena has no memories of living inside the palace as an infant, however. Mere weeks after her birth, the infant Athena, her mother, their staff of domestic servants, and the Zeon military leaders left to protect them at all costs were forced to flee Side 3 for the Asteroid Belt as the Earth Federation Forces defeated the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon at Side 3. Athena then spent the next seven years of her life at Axis Fortress in the Asteroid Belt before returning to Cislunar Space at the age of eight in U.C. 0087, when Lady Haman Khan led the Axis Zeon Forces into the First Neo Zeon War. During that conflict, Athena had spent some time living within the palace and learned to hate its large, cavernous halls and the portraits of her grandfather, uncles, and aunt staring down severely upon her. No one had told Athena then that her family had committed unspeakable atrocities against all of humanity. Her circle of handlers and the military leaders who served her had always praised the Zabis as enlightened leaders…almost saints. It was only after Colonel Char took her out of circle of influence of those sycophants that Athena discovered the horrible truth about her heritage, saddling with her with a crushing sense of guilt too much for any individual to bear.

Athena sighs, attempting to push aside those terrible memories. The long shadow of her family's name and legacy has continued to haunt her, as hard as she has tried to bury their ghosts and disown her heritage.

Athena spots Jolie rushing up the steps carrying two plastic boxes of food. For the duration of the operation, the Special Forces have been eating the same kinds of meals being given to the civilians of Side 3.

"Hey," Jolie says, handling Athena one of the boxes, "Hope you like fish. I got you grilled tilapia with mashed potatoes."

Athena, who actually does prefer fish over red meat, smiles and takes the box from Jolie, "Thanks. I love fish. This is good."

Jolie sits down next to Athena on the steps of the entrance of the palace and opens her own lunch box…creamed chicken on rice. Sitting side by side on the steps with their matching Federal Forces uniforms, Athena and Jolie resemble a pair of high school girls more than two Special Forces officers.

"This stuff isn't bad for processed rations," Jolie says, taking a bite of her lunch with the included plastic fork.

"I made sure that the people here got some decent food," Athena says, taking a bite from her own lunch, "They've been living off stale, molded, unsanitary food for much too long. They're human beings: they deserve better than that."

"You've done a lot of good for them, 'Thena," Jolie says, chewing, "I think you ought to be proud of what you've done here."

"Too much pride isn't a good thing," Athena observes, as she fiddles with her food, "Of all of humanity's flaws, pride is probably the most dangerous of them all."

Athena then adds, "By the way, good work this morning on the solar panel replacement work. Not only did you get the job done very efficiently, but you gave the people here a good show as well. I was impressed too."

Jolie grins. Her best friend and commanding officer doesn't dish out direct praise very often, so when she does, it's something to be savored, "Well, I did promise the kids I'd put on a show for them with the Centurion Gundam."

As if on cue, the children run by the two Centurion Team officers, playing a game of tag. The kids wave to Athena and Jolie as they run by, and the two pretty officers smile and wave back at the children.

"I really hope I can have kids of my own someday," Jolie sighs wistfully, "I'd love to be a mom and have a whole bunch of kids."

Athena smiles and says nothing.

"What about you?" Jolie asks, "Ever think about having kids of your own someday?"

Athena replies, "Maybe someday…when the wars are finally over. Of course, even if I can really succeed in making that happen, I'll probably be too old to have children by then."

"You're only nineteen, 'Thena," Jolie points out.

"I feel much older than that, though," Athena says.

The two friends continue eating their lunches in silence for a few minutes, until a transport flatbed passes by bearing a large Christmas tree…a real, organic Christmas tree, at least ten meters tall.

"Wow!" Jolie says, "Look at that!"

The tree is to be erected on the former Mall of the Archduchy in front of the palace. Delighted Side 3 citizens, young and old alike, run to the spot where the Christmas tree is to be erected. Nothing like this has been seen in Zum City in at least twenty years.

"Cool!" Jolie enthuses.

Athena smiles, "I arranged to have that tree brought here from the hydroponics forest at Side 6."

"You arranged it?" Jolie says, amazed, "But how did…?"

"Paid for it out of my own paycheck," Athena says, "The Treasury Department certainly wasn't going to give me the budget for something like this. It cost me an entire month's pay, but what the hell. It's not like I'm going to spend it on food and clothing," Athena indicates her plastic boxed meal and her Federal Forces uniform.

Jolie looks at Athena with warm admiration, "'Thena, you are so sweet sometimes."

Athena smiles and blushes at Jolie's praise, "These people deserve to have some happiness in their lives. They've suffered enough. I'm just doing what I can for them. It's not enough, though."

"They'll have a happier holiday this year, at least," Jolie observes.

"Well, I hope so, anyway," Athena says, knowing how the situation could turn for the worse very swiftly.

After lunch, Athena receives word that Colonel Cairlay has arrived from Garrison Noah. His arrival is not unexpected. Athena has known that the colonel would be coming to check on the progress she is making at Side 3.

"We have electricity, water, and communications running at full capacity in Zum City, sir," Athena reports to Colonel Cairlay, "and we'll be continuing our work in Side 3's other colonies beginning tomorrow. It'll probably be at least seven to eight months before we can have all of Side 3's colonies functional again."

"You've done well," Cairlay says, "ISRLA activity has dwindled to almost nothing during the past week. That was, after all, our goal."

Colonel Cairlay spots the Christmas tree being erected in the central mall, "Hmmm. That Christmas tree…?"

Athena cannot help a small smile, "I had that brought in, sir. It's good for the morale of the civilians and the troops here alike."

"Indeed," the colonel notices, "but did the Treasury Department…?"

Athena explains, "I didn't go through Treasury, sir. I paid for it out of my own pocket."

Colonel Cairlay lets out an amused laugh, "Ah, Athena…a unique solution as always."

Cairlay lights a cigar, then tells Athena, "Keep up the good work, Captain. I'll be taking up a temporary office here as of today."

Athena is not thrilled by that idea, but she can work around it. There is something she is curious about, however, "Colonel, I'd like to know: why haven't we had more input from General Noah on this operation?"

Cairlay takes a deep puff from his cigar, and exhales before he replies, "General Noah has been assigned to observe the Neo Zeon civil war that's escalating out in the Asteroid Belt. He's expected to be out there at least a month. General Blackhead is in charge of this theater of operations."

"Yes, sir," Athena replies, fearing as much. Unlike the more fair-minded General Noah, General Blackhead is known as a fierce anti-Spacenoid Earthist. Athena realizes that her "soft" approach to Side 3 likely doesn't thrill Blackhead.

Nevertheless, Athena is confident that she can see the restoration of Side 3 to fruition. It would go a long way to assuaging the guilt that has eaten away at her for an entire decade.

Late during the evening of that same day, an Earth Federation supply convoy approaches Zum City from Side 1. The convoy is carrying vital goods…food, medicine, and materials for the colony's refurbishment. Among the cargo are a human heart for transplant to a needy patient at Side 3 who will die without it and a badly needed shipment of salt. Hence, it is under escort by a mobile suits squadron.

"Convoy 71A requesting permission to dock with Zum City spaceport," comes the transmission from the convoy's lead ship.

"Roger, 71A," returns a tech from the control tower, "Access granted at Berth 29-43."

"Roger, Zum 'Port," comes the reply.

Three shots fired. Three mobile suits annihilated.

Panic. Fire. Smoke. Terror.

Silence.

Three more shots fired, three supply ships destroyed.

Blood. Sparks. Twisted metal. Burnt bodies.

Three more shots fired. A chain reaction of explosions annihilates the remaining mobile suits and ships, destroying a total of twenty-four assorted targets.

Death. Ruin. Hopes dashed.

From his black Sazabi MK-II, Colonel Braniff Oskar watches it silently and coldly.

The Sazabi reholsters its beam rifle and vectors away, its presence undetected. Before leaving, however, the Sazabi discards the shells of its beam rifle where they will be conveniently found by the Federal Forces.

Within an hour, the Centurion Team is at the site of the attack, sifting through the wreckage, recovering the bodies of the dead along with whatever cargo can be salvaged (which is very little, and does not include a human heart) from the destroyed convoy ships.

"Who did this?" Jolie demands angrily from the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam, "Who?!"

Cpl. Anna Horowitz locates three discarded beam rifle energy cartridges, "This is a model NZ2-SZ beam rifle cartridge. These are installed into the magazines of the beam rifles of Sazabi model mobile suits."

"The Neo Zeon?" Jolie speculates.

"More likely ISRLA," Athena concludes. Something about that doesn't quite add up, however.

"Let's get those terrorist bastards!" Jolie says.

"Not yet," Athena cautions, "We don't know for sure yet. Right now, our priority is to secure Zum City and the rest of Side 3. Also, the people of the colony are not going to be happy when they find out that we lost a supply convoy."

Jolie pounds her gloved fist on the control console of the Centurion Gundam in frustration. Those ISRLA terrorists must be heartless to deny the people of Side 3 those vital supplies they need.

"I thought the ISRLA wanted to help the people of Side 3 and all Spacenoids," Jolie says, "How could they have done something like this?"

"That's a good question," Athena says quietly, "it doesn't make sense."

Athena, Jolie, and the rest of the Centurions continue their search. After a few hours, Athena concludes that there is no more information of value they can find and orders the Centurions to return to Zum City.

Athena scarcely returns to the city after docking her Cour De Leon at the spacedock before she is approached by a crowd of nervous civilians.

"Captain Ibaz," says one of the civilians, a Mr. Nemani, "We heard the supply convoy was attacked."

"Will we still be getting our supplies?" a Mrs. McIntire asks, "My husband needs his medication."

"We're running short on infant formula," another woman says.

Athena calms the audience with a simple gesture for silence, then proceeds, "Thank you. Yes, the information you have probably been hearing is accurate. The supply convoy was attacked and much of its cargo destroyed. My unit salvaged what little is usable, but unfortunately, it isn't much."

There is a collective gasp among the crowd, and a few mumblings of discontentment.

One young man asks, "Do you know who carried out the attack, Captain?"

Athena replies, "The initial evidence suggests it might be the ISRLA."

"But the ISRLA wouldn't do that," another youth protests, "They've always been supporters of us Spacenoids, especially here at Side 3!"

Athena concedes, "It's as perplexing to us as it is to you."

There is great anxiety among the crowd. Sensing this, Athena tells the people, "Rest assured that we will find and stop the perpetrators. The Special Forces will not allow terrorists to threaten the people of Side 3."

The tension dispels, for the moment. Athena has temporarily calmed the anxieties of the citizens of Zum City, but she knows that calm will not prevail for long unless the threat is eliminated.

The following day, work crews in hydrosuits and mobile suits are repairing the outer structure of Zum City and other Side 3 colonies.

A single blast of a beam rifle, seemingly from nowhere, eliminates a work crew of a half dozen hydrosuits.

Another blast scarcely six minutes later destroys a mobile suit on patrol.

As the terrified work crews withdraw into Zum City, a final blast severely damages the city's spacedock, narrowly missing the Centurion Team's docked mobile suits.

That evening's edition of the Cislunar Daily Journal is headlined with this article…

**TWO DAYS, TWO TERRORIST ATTACKS**

**Citizens Ask: Why Aren't The Federal Forces Protecting Us From The Terrorists?**

by

Linda Ackerman

Editor-In-Chief

_ZUM CITY - Side 3. The Earth Federation Government's new Side 3 policy has encountered a difficult new obstacle, leading many citizens of Zum City to question the Federation's commitment and effectiveness in managing Side 3's affairs. _

Late yesterday afternoon, a supply convoy bearing vital supplies to Zum City from Side 1 was assaulted by an unidentified mobile suit. The mobile suit's origins have not been ascertained, although Federal Forces authorities believe it to possibly be of ISRLA origin.

Many Zum City citizens disagree with this assessment, however, citing that the ISRLA has long been a benign force at Side 3.

The Federal Forces' failure to respond to the initial attack resulted in the loss of vital supplies, including a heart from a hospital at Side 1 that a patient in Zum City was urgently waiting to receive. That patient is now in critical condition pending the location and arrival of another suitable heart.

This morning, a second attack occurred against work crews restoring the external structure of Side 3.

Colonel Peter Cairlay and Captain Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Special Forces will hold a press conference later today concerning these developments. 

The press conference is held at 13:00 at a podium placed at the front of Zum Royal Palace, at almost precisely the same spot where Prince Giren Zabi gave his infamous manifesto speech during the funeral of his youngest brother, Prince Garma Zabi, during the One Year War.

Colonel Cairlay takes the podium. The crowd is not receptive towards the tall, gaunt, sinister-looking Federal Forces senior officer. There is distrust and anger in the eyes of the people as they face Cairlay and await what he has to say. Seated behind the podium is Captain Athena Ibaz, who looks impassively at the crowd as the colonel prepares to make his remarks.

Cairlay clears his throat, "Ladies and gentlemen of Side 3. Good afternoon. As you all certainly know by now, ISRLA terrorists launched a cowardly attack on the convoy bringing you supplies from Side 1. This affront to the Federation will not go unpunished!"

Behind Cairlay, Athena rubs her eyes and shakes her head, _He's doing this all wrong,_ Athena fumes silently, _This is going to turn into a disaster. Just wait._

The crowd is getting restless. Cairlay is saying nothing that they are interested in hearing. He seems more intent on promoting the Federation than helping and protecting them.

A young man in the crowd points to Cairlay and shouts, "So who are you gonna punish, old man, the terrorists or us?!"

"Yeah!" another youth adds, "You weren't much good a protecting us yesterday, or for the past twenty years!"

"We're in this mess because of you feddies!" another citizen says angrily.

The angry mob begins to pelt Cairlay with whatever objects they have at hand. Athena rises from her seat and puts herself in front of the colonel as he slinks away from the stage.

At the sight of Athena, the crowd calms down somewhat, at least enough to stop hurling projectiles. They have no respect for the Federation or for Cairlay, but they still respect Athena. She and the Centurions are the only ones who have genuinely treated them well and have been honest to them.

Realizing the futility of having Colonel Cairlay attempt to continue his speech, and knowing that if Cairlay takes the podium again, the mob is likely to rush the man and physically tear into him, Athena escorts the colonel back to the Parliament Building as a platoon of Federal Forces military police restrain the restless mob.

After they reach Colonel Cairlay's spacious office (formerly belonging to Prime Minister Zeon Daikun himself) in the Parliament Building, the colonel fumes, "Those Zeon dogs! How dare they treat an officer of the Earth Federation Forces with such impudence! They don't deserve our protection or assistance; they deserve to be imprisoned like the animals like they are!"

Suppressing her own anger at the colonel with all her willpower, Athena says, "Emotions are raw here, sir. These people have been devastated by two decades of war. They've learned to not trust power so easily...especially not the Federation's power."

"They're animals!" Cairlay reiterates angrily, "I fail to see why you continue believe that they can be reasoned with, Captain Ibaz!"

"The Federation hasn't even tried to reason with them during the past twenty years, Colonel," Athena says evenly, "but if we don't start, Zum City will just be the detonating fuse for a much larger powder keg. Especially with the Neo Zeon civil war intensifying in the Asteroid Belt, we can ill afford a full-scale insurrection by the space colonies."

Still steaming, but unable to fault Athena's logic, Cairlay says, "I'm prepared to let you continue to play this out your way, Athena, at least for now. But bear in mind that General Blackhead has made it very clear that we're prepared to respond more aggressively if that's what's necessary."

"But, sir…" Athena begins.

"Also," Cairlay adds, cutting Athena off, "I've been reading that local rag…_Cislunar Daily Journal_. I want you to shut that paper down, Captain."

"Colonel," Athena says, "with all due respect, sir, I don't think that's advisable."

"And why not, Captain?" Cairlay asks pointedly, losing his patience with Athena's resistance to pursuing more aggressive approaches to the problem.

Athena says, "The _Cislunar Free Media_ is Side 3's only access to what its people consider information that is not filtered through the Federation's propaganda…"

"…which is why it must be shut down!" Cairlay insists.

"Doing so will further set the space colonies against the Federation," Athena adds reasonably, but futilely. It's like trying to reason with a mule.

Ignoring Athena's protestations, Cairlay tells the Centurion Team Leader, "I want the CFM shut down, Captain. Do you understand? You have twenty-four hours to have it done your way. If I see or hear any more anti-Federation propaganda, I will be forced to use more aggressive measures."

"Yes, sir," Athena replies, feeling as if a vise is tightening around her skull.

Two hours later, Linda Ackerman (Dory Ischinda) returns to the offices/printing facility/broadcasting center of the _Cislunar Free Media_ located in downtown Zum City. The CFM headquarters is a multi-building compound including an office tower, a broadcasting station, a printing facility, a computer center, and assorted other facilities. Security around the compound is as heavy as it can be without the use of larger hardware such as mobile sits.

"Ms. Ackerman," Dory's personal secretary, Miss Olivia, tells her employer, "Captain Athena Ibaz of the Earth Federation Forces is here to see you. She's waiting for you in her office."

Dory sighs, thanking her secretary. She has a pretty good idea what Athena has come for.

Dory enters her office to see Athena seated in Dory's chair.

"I know why you're here," Dory says challengingly to Athena, "and you can forget it. We aren't going to alter our work in any way. There's such a thing as 'integrity' in our line of work, Captain Ibaz…although I doubt you'd ever understand it."

"Dory," Athena says calmly, "My superiors are calling for more aggressive action against the CFM…"

"Your 'superiors'?!" Dory sputters in anger, "Damn it, Minerva, how can you even bring yourself to say something like that? You're the leader of the people of Zeon! It's an insult to all of them and to yourself to refer to those Feddies as 'superiors.'"

"Look," Athena says seriously, "I'm not here to argue with you. I'm here to warn you: be more discreet about your business or terrible things could happen."

"Is that a threat?" Dory asks keenly.

"Think of it as a grave precaution," Athena says, rising from Dory's seat, "If you choose to continue what you're doing, I can't promise that I'll be able to protect you."

"Save your 'protection,' Minerva," Dory says contemptuously, "We don't need it. We're not afraid. We're not cowards, unlike some others."

Athena, not letting Dory's words nettle her, implores her childhood caretaker and friend one last time, "Dory, please…for your own sake."

Dory says firmly, "No, and that's final. If the Federation sends in its thug army, we'll be ready to deal with them. See yourself out, Captain, I'm very busy. The people of Side 3 are anxiously awaiting the truth."

Athena sighs, leaving Dory to compose her latest tirade against the Federation. Athena worries that before long, the death of another friend will be on her hands.

Later that evening, Athena returns to the temporary barracks of the Centurion Team, located in military facility once occupied by the Royal Academy of the Archduchy of Zeon, where thousands upon thousands of young men and women once trained for service in the Army of the Archduchy of Zeon.

Jolie is sitting on her bed, reading the late edition of the _Cislunar Daily Journal_ and looking livid.

"Hey, 'Thena!" Jolie says, "Come here! Look at this crap they're writing at the CFM!"

Athena reads the op-ed section of the newspaper that Jolie hands her.

**EARTH FEDERATION FORCES REVEALS TRUE COLORS**

by

Linda Ackerman, Editor In Chief

_When Colonel Peter Cairlay of the Earth Federation Special Forces delivered his rather unapologetic speech today concerning the Federal Forces' failure to prevent two recent terrorist attacks, the most striking feature of his uniform was the yellow stripe that ran down the front of his uniform jacket. _

It probably would have been more fitting, however, if that stripe had run down the back of the colonel's uniform.

The Federation has always placed great stock in symbols. Just look at its flag and its crest.

A yellow stripe down the center of their soldiers' backs would be the most fitting symbol of all.

The Earth Federation Forces are not an army. Armies fight other armies.

The Federal Forces, however, bully and starve old women and children. These aren't soldiers, they're thugs.

Colonel Cairlay boldly (read: "pompously") vowed today that the Federation would "punish the terrorists."

Which, decoded into human language, means that the Federation will deflect its own incompetence and cowardliness by unleashing its aggression on the defenseless citizens of Side 3... 

Angrily, but quietly, a tightlipped Athena rips the newspaper into halves, then quarters, then eighths. She rolls the remains into a ball and tosses it into a nearby wastebasket.

Jolie bunches her hands into fists, "Let's go talk to those people at the CFM and tell them to stop making up this bullshit!"

"I already have," Athena says calmly.

"Well…?!" Jolie demands.

"Well, they just don't see things the Federation's way," Athena replies.

Jolie begins to storm out of the room.

"Where do you think you're going?" Athena asks.

Jolie replies, "I'm gonna go tell those CFM jerks off!"

Athena turns, wagging a finger at Jolie, "You'll do no such thing. I want you to stay out of this. I'm going to handle it my way. You will not take any action on this matter without direct orders, do you understand?"

Jolie clearly doesn't like the idea, but relents, sitting back down

Athena demands more sternly, "Lt. Minh, do you understand?"

Jolie replies quietly, "Yes, ma'am."

"Don't you forget it," Athena finishes, dead serious.

Athena leaves the room to give her attention to other business. As she leaves, Jolie sticks her tongue out and makes a face at Athena's back.

At the same time, Colonel Cairlay is in the midst of a videoconference with General Blackhead, who is back at Garrison Noah at Side 7.

"Captain Ibaz doesn't appear to be very supportive of a more aggressive approach," Cairlay tells his commanding officer, "She objected when I ordered her to shut down the CFM. I've given her twenty-four hours to comply, but she's taken no action yet, which you know as well as I do isn't like her. Normally, she fulfills our orders almost before we give them. This time, she's deliberately dragging her feet. I can't understand why she's being so protective of those damned Zeke sympathizers."

Blackhead, chomping on a large cigar whose smoke obscures his features on the video screen, replies, "I hated the plan from the start. Total waste of time and resources and shows the Federation is weak. Now, the ISR is capitalizing on it, just like I thought they would."

Blackhead puts down his cigar, then tells the Director of the Special Forces, "Listen, Cairlay. We can't wait for Ibaz to act. I want you to go around her and order Lt. Minh to take action directly."

"Sir?" Cairlay says doubtfully. Going around Athena to directly order Jolie to move against the CFM is a dubious breach of military protocol.

"We can't afford to stand on ceremony," Blackhead says, "We have to send a strong message that the Federation won't tolerate dissent. Give those orders to Lt. Minh immediately, Colonel."

Cairlay salutes, "Yes, sir."

An hour later, Athena is at the central energy station of Zum City. During the past week, she has been working closely with Frank Duchov, the plant foreman and chief decision-maker of the energy station, in the restoration and repair of Zum City's energy grid.

Despite having grown up at Side 3 during the era of the Contolist Revolution and the One Year War, Frank Duchov has never been much of a political man. He's strictly a pragmatist, and is perfectly willing to support whichever alignment best favors his personal needs. Athena's project has given Duchov a job again after many years of unemployed drifting, so he's more than willing to accommodate her request for an extraordinary favor.

"Yeah, I can cut all power to the CFM compound," Duchov tells Athena in his office at the plant, "They might have their own generators, though."

"Not anymore," Athena says, "Our intelligence operatives went into their compound and confiscated their generators two days ago."

"In that case," Duchov says, "just say 'when' and I can make them blind, deaf, and mute with the flip of a few switches."

"Not until I order it," Athena says, "That order will come down sometime in the next twenty-four hours. Wait for it."

"It's your call, Captain," Duchov grins, "I owe you for helping me have a job again, so whatever it is you want, I'll do it for you."

Athena nods. This should be enough to satisfy Colonel Cairlay's order for "action" without harming Dory or her CFM colleagues.

At the same time that Athena is meeting with Frank Duchov, Colonel Cairlay arrives at the Centurion Team's temporary barracks. He sees Jolie sitting alone in the barracks' canteen, unaccompanied by Athena or any other Special Forces troops. Perfect.

"Lt. Minh," Cairlay says, putting on his friendliest smile.

"Colonel Cairlay," Jolie blinks, surprised. She has never liked the colonel, whom she likes to call "Colonel Creepy" behind his back. Nevertheless, Jolie has endured enough lectures on proper military protocol from Athena to know what she must do next.

Jolie rises and salutes, "Sir!"

Cairlay returns the salute, "At ease, Lieutenant. Where's Captain Ibaz?"

Jolie replies, "Captain Ibaz is away from the base on official business, sir…at the central energy station, she said."

"I see," Cairlay replies, "That's good. Lieutenant, I have special orders for you."

Jolie blinks some more, "Special orders? For me? Um…"

"Yes," Cairlay says, "but these orders are to be carried out in the strictest secrecy. Even Captain Ibaz must not know about it, not until we're ready."

Jolie doesn't like it, but Athena always has told her that there would be times when the Special Forces would be asked to take on covert operations.

"Yes, sir," Jolie tells the Colonel.

"Good," Cairlay replies, "Your orders, Lt. Minh, are to use a Rick Dias MK-II mobile suit that we have prepared for you to destroy the CFM compound in downtown Zum City."

Jolie can't believe what she's hearing, "Uh…"

"Is there a problem, Lieutenant?" Cairlay asks menacingly.

Jolie replies, "I kind of want to know why I'm gonna be attacking it. It's just some lousy media company, isn't it? Why do I need to destroy its buildings? And why can't I use the Centurion Gundam?"

Cairlay replies gravely, "Jolie, we've learned that the CFM is a front for an ISRLA base. Inside that compound are weapons that the ISRLA plans to use to kill all the people in this space colony."

"No!" Jolie exclaims, horror filling her large, beautiful eyes.

"Yes," Cairlay lies, "The ISRLA are terrorists. They have no regard for human life in their means of achieving their political goals. Our intelligence units have uncovered that they have a supply of G3 toxic gas stored at the CFM compound and plan to unleash it tomorrow against the people of Zum City."

_Ohmigod, the kids!_ Jolie thinks, picturing those children whom she has grown fond of dying horribly as the extremely toxic G3 gas destroys their flesh from within.

"It would be horrible, Jolie," Cairlay says, full of false _pathos_, "You must help us prevent it!"

"Well, of course I will," Jolie says, "but why can't I use the Centurion Gundam?"

Cairlay replies, "Because of your and Athena's efforts, the people of Zum City and Side 3 at large have gained a positive view of the Special Forces in recent days. We don't want to tarnish that. But the people in this space colony are very fickle when it comes to heroes. For example, although the CFM harbors and supports terrorists and traitors, the people of Side 3 hold them in very high regard for some reason."

"Well, their 'heroes' are gonna backstab them," Jolie says wryly.

"You must not allow it to happen," Cairlay says, "The people of Side 3 are depending on you, Lieutenant."

"Yes, sir," Jolie replies.

"Good," Cairlay smiles, "And remember, Lieutenant: not a word about this to Captain Ibaz or anyone else until the operation is over, understand?"

"Yes, sir," Jolie repeats.

Jolie isn't exactly sure what she's gotten herself into, but she knows she's already neck-deep in it. She prays that she can carry out her duty successfully, however, to spare the people of Zum City a horrible death.

Forty minutes later, Athena returns to the barracks. She needs to talk things over with Jolie…let her executive officer and most trusted friend know about her plan for shutting down the CFM without bloodshed.

"Jolie?" Athena calls, looking around the barracks, "Jolie, where are you?"

Athena tries Jolie's frequency on the military comlink. Jolie doesn't respond.

_Damn!_ Athena thinks, _Where the hell is she?_

Cpl. Anna Horowitz enters. Athena asks her, "Anna, have you seen Jolie?"

Anna replies, "She left with Colonel Cairlay somewhere around half an hour ago."

"With Colonel Cairlay?" Athena says, for once at a loss for an explanation, "To where? For what?"

"Sorry, ma'am," Anna says, "Neither the colonel nor the lieutenant said anything to me on the way out. I just saw them leave."

Red flags go up in Athena's head. She doesn't like this development at all.

Late that night, the silence of Zum City's devastated downtown region is broken by the hydraulic sound of a mobile suit landing on the street outside the headquarters compound of the _Cislunar Free Media_. Even with sound suppressors attached, the Rick Dias MK-II creates one hell of a racket.

Aboard the RICK DIAS MK-II, 2Lt. Jolie Minh uses the mobile suit's heat and motion detectors to scan the property. Five people are present on the compound, even at this late hour.

_Have to get them out of the way first,_ Jolie thinks.

Jolie presses the trigger for the Vulcan cannon mounted on the Rick Dias MK-II's head. Hundreds of machine gun rounds rake the grounds of the CFM compound, creating plenty of noise…precisely Jolie's objective. Creating fear, not death, is her goal at the moment.

As expected, personnel from inside the CFM compound run scrambling out of the buildings. Jolie notices that Linda Ackerman, the Editor-In-Chief of the _Cislunar Daily Journal_, isn't among them. Too bad. Jolie wishes Linda were there so she could scare the crap out of her with some well-placed Vulcan cannon rounds.

Jolie notices two of the five figures pausing and pointing something at her mobile suit.

_Whoa,_ Jolie realizes, _These guys are packing some serious hardware!_

The two men facing Jolie's Rick Dias MK-II point shoulder-mounted anti-MS bazooka cannon at the Earth Federation Forces mobile suit.

Generally, anti-MS weaponry designed to be held by human hands are considered laughably ineffective against mobile suits in actual combat situations. Nevertheless, if the users get off a lucky shot, they can still do some serious damage.

The two men fire anti-MS rockets at the Rick Dias MK-II.

Jolie considers her options in an instant. She can raise the Rick Dias MK-II's arm mounted shield to block the incoming missiles, but at this range, the shrapnel and shockwave from the explosion would likely kill the men who fired the missiles.

Jolie is not here to kill anyone. She chooses to dodge the missiles.

Jolie directs the Rick Dias MK-II into a deft dodge of the two missiles. At such a range, most other mobile suit pilots would not have been able to execute such a dodge. 2Lt. Jolie Minh, however, is not "most other mobile suit pilots."

The missiles fly past the Rick Dias MK-II to hit the space colony's interior wall several thousand meters across the internal space of the cylinder-spaced colony, creating an explosion at a fortunately unpopulated sector of the colony.

_Ouch!_ Jolie reflects, glad that no one was hurt by that shot, but concerned about the ongoing risk.

_Need to end this fast!_ Jolie resolves.

Jolie strafes the area with the Rick Dias MK-II's Vulcan cannon again. The two CSM security men are forced to drop their weapons and flee.

Satisfied, Jolie turns her attention to the compound itself.

Colonel Cairlay told Jolie that intelligence discovered the ISRLA's G3 gas canisters at many different locations on the CFM compound. Therefore, she had to destroy the entire facility to ensure the canisters' destruction. Furthermore, to make sure that there is no accidental leakage of deadly G3 gas into the colony, Jolie will need to use the Rick Dias MK-II's supply of plasma bombs to ensure complete destruction.

Jolie goes to work. Darting among the buildings of the CFM compound with the Rick Dias MK-II, Jolie plants a plasma bomb on the exterior wall of each building…the broadcast tower, the print factory, the computer center, and the main office building.

Jolie targets each of the bombs with the Rick Dias MK-II's beam rifle. She fires five shots.

The CFM compound goes up in flames, the conflagration can be seen throughout Zum City. Emergency water and smoke ventilation measures, recently restored to full operation, come to life to put out the flame before it engulfs the entire colony.

Conscious of and warned about that danger, Jolie also turns the Rick Dias MK-II's fire extinguisher nozzle upon the flames, which should have already done their job of taking out the gas canisters. Noting that the Rick Dias MK-II's atmospheric sensors pick up nothing unusual in the atmosphere of the colony (other than the smoke from the burning of the compound), Jolie takes some satisfaction in having completed her assignment.

Jolie contacts Colonel Cairlay on the special frequency he told her about prior to dispatching her, "This is Lieutenant Minh to Colonel Cairlay. Mission accomplished, sir."

"Excellent," Cairlay says, sounding pleased, "Return the Rick Dias MK-II to base immediately, Lieutenant. You may return to your quarters after that."

"Yes, sir," Jolie replies, vectoring the Rick Dias MK-II for the spacedock.

Athena has returned to the central energy station, knowing that Frank Duchov is working the overnight shift this evening. She has decided to speed up her timetable on the plan to cut power to the CFM compound.

"Frank," Athena says, so hurried that she doesn't even bother to knock on the door of the man's office, "We've got an emergency. I want you to cut power to the CF…"

Duchov is not paying attention. The man is rapt at the breaking news coming through his television, "…was apparently attacked by a Federal Forces Rick Dias MK-II mobile suit. The entire facility is severely damaged, and much of the CFM's valuable equipment has been destroyed. Federal Forces authorities…"

Noticing Athena's presence for the first time, Duchov shrugs and tells Athena, "Guess we're not going to be cutting power to the CFM compound after all, eh Captain?"

Now it's Athena's turn to be rapt by the horrific images on the television screen. A security camera on a nearby building had caught the attack on tape. Athena watches as the Rick Dias MK-II on the screen easily dodges a pair of missiles fired at it from handheld rocket launchers.

Only one pilot in the Earth Federation Forces has reflexes so quick that she can avoid a shot at that close a range, in so limited a space.

"Who'd have thought it'd come to this," Duchov said, "Did the ISRLA really have poison gas canisters in those buildings, Captain? Captain Ibaz?"

Athena has already left; she departed before Colonel Cairlay came on the screen to tell the media about the discovery of G3 toxin tanks at the now destroyed CFM compound.

2Lt. Jolie Minh returns to the Centurion Team's barracks. It's 00:44. Jolie stretches and yawns. It's late, and she's tired.

Too exhausted to change out of her uniform, Jolie flops onto her bed.

Athena enters the room that she shares with Jolie. Her face is expressionless.

Too tired to offer the usual cheerful greeting, Jolie wearily says, "Hi, 'Thena. 'Night, 'Thena."

Athena grabs Jolie by the collar of her uniform, dragging Jolie off of the bed in a single, brutal move. Athena pulls her fist back and lands a devastating punch on the teenager's beautiful left cheek.

The shock of the blow sends Jolie careening across the room, where she lands on Athena's bed.

Athena comes at Jolie again, raising her fist for another punch.

The sheer unexpectedness of Athena's first punch, and Jolie's own grogginess, resulted in Jolie's being unable to avoid or block the blow. That isn't going to happen a second time, however.

Jolie blocks Athena's second punch with her left arm, then lashes out with a punch of her own with her tiny, but deceptively powerful right fist. The punch catches Athena on the side of the nose, not breaking it, but causing it to bleed from the left nostril. The blow knocks Athena across the room, where she lands on Jolie's bed.

"What's your fucking problem?!" Jolie demands angrily, "Crazy bitch!"

Jolie's punch seems to have knocked some sense back into Athena. At the very least, she doesn't try to hit Jolie again. She does ask, however, "Why? Why did you do it, Jolie?"

"Do what?!" Jolie demands.

"Destroy the CFM compound," Athena says, her nose still bleeding, the blood running into her mouth, "I told you not to act without orders. Why didn't you listen to me?"

"But I did have orders!" Jolie replies hotly, "I…uh…"

"What orders?" Athena asks, "From whom?"

Jolie hesitates, remembering Colonel Cairlay's instructions to tell no one, not even Athena, about the operation.

"TELL ME, DAMMIT!" Athena demands, the fire of rage in her eyes.

Shocked by Athena's outburst of anger, Jolie responds with some anger of her own, "It was Colonel Cairlay! He told me that there was G3 toxin at the CFM compound and they couldn't wait for you to decide what to do about it! I did the job because you wouldn't, is that good enough for you, CAPTAIN?!!"

"Colonel Cairlay," Athena says, now fully realizing what has been happening. Athena's blood boils, but her anger is not directed at Jolie anymore.

Athena pulls out her handkerchief, wiping her blood out of her mouth and nose. Although she no longer blames her junior executive officer for what happened, Athena just can't face Jolie…not right now.

Athena puts on her officer's hat and her overcoat, leaving the barracks to find some place to clear her mind. She slams the door behind her as she leaves.

Jolie picks up a heavy paperweight, made in the shape of the Earth Federation Government's logo, from one of the two desks in the room. Jolie hurls the paperweight at the door; the paperweight shatters upon impact.

Early the next morning, Athena is in Colonel Cairlay's office, inquiring about the events of the previous evening.

"I must apologize, Captain," Cairlay says without a hint of sincerity, "that I needed to circumvent your authority and order Lt. Minh into action immediately. The new information that we received from central intelligence indicated a grave and imminent threat, and you were occupied elsewhere. We needed to act on that information right away, as you must certainly understand."

"Yes, sir," Athena says, maintaining composure despite the anger seething inside her.

"I hope you didn't blame Lt. Minh for taking action without your authorization," Cairlay smiles falsely, "You and Jolie are such good friends. I'd hate to think that your friendship has been damaged in any way by the previous evening's events."

"No, sir," Athena says, "the Lieutenant and I both understand the fluid nature of the situation and the need for us to be flexible in our responses to the needs of the moment."

"Thank you, Captain," Cairlay says, "Now unless you have further questions, you may be dismissed."

"Thank you, sir," Athena replies, leaving for the barracks.

Cairlay smiles with some satisfaction. For once, he's been able to outmaneuver that smart-aleck girl and her talented, immature sidekick.

A phone call arrives for Colonel Cairlay. It is General Blackhead at Side 7.

"Yes, General," Cairlay says into the phone, "Yes, our little White Phoenix has torched the CFM compound. That should silence them for the time being."

Cairlay listens to Blackhead's response, and his smile soon fades, he says, "That's worrisome news, then. All right. We'll be standing by if necessary, sir."

Cairlay hangs up the phone, brooding upon what General Blackhead has just told him: General Bright Noah will soon be returning to Cislunar Space and he bears grim tidings from the Asteroid Belt – the Neo Zeon remnants have assumed a full civil war position. War could break out in the Asteroid Belt and the Outer Colonies at any time. The Special Forces will soon be on Yellow Alert standby for redeployment to the Asteroid Belt.

At noon, Athena is at the barracks' cafeteria, having just gotten her lunch. She spots Jolie already sitting at one of the tables alone and dejected, filling her face with food.

Athena takes a seat next to Jolie. Without looking at Athena, Jolie moves her tray and herself to the end of the table, putting distance between herself and Athena.

"Hey," Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe whispers to Cpl. Anna Horowitz, indicating Athena and Jolie with a motion of his head, "What's with them today?"

"They were fighting about something late last night," Anna whispers to Geoff, "Didn't you hear the yelling coming from their room? Looks like they punched each other around some too."

Sgt. Tomo Higashi joins the conversation, "What's up?"

Geoff indicates Athena and Jolie, "Lovers' spat," he jokes, causing the other Centurions to giggle.

Athena and Jolie continue their meals in silence, sitting at opposite ends of the bench, not speaking, not even looking at each other. It's a stark contrast to the warm camaraderie they shared just twenty-four hours ago.

Jolie, finished with her lunch, pulls a cigarette from her pocket. She fishes around for her lighter, but realizes that it's not on her.

Athena's lighter comes to the rescue, igniting Jolie's cigarette.

"So did you find out what really happened?" Jolie asks at last, breaking the silence.

"Yes," Athena replies, "I talked to Colonel Cairlay this morning. The bastard went around me to give you those orders."

Athena looks at Jolie's pretty left cheek, a tiny purple bruise on the spot where Athena had punched Jolie the previous evening. Athena places her hand gently on Jolie's facial wound, "Does it hurt?"

Jolie, tears forming in her eyes, replies with a choked back sob, "Not so much on the outside as on the inside."

"Jolie," Athena begins awkwardly, "I'm so sorry. I…"

Jolie finishes, "You did the same thing I would have done if I were you. I understand, Athena."

Jolie puts down her cigarette and looks at Athena's nose, fortunately not broken.

"How's your nose?" Jolie asks.

Athena puts her hand on her delicate nose, "Still smarts."

Jolie begins to laugh, as does Athena.

"We're supposed to be fighting the ISRLA and the Zeon," Jolie says through her laughter, "But instead, we beat the crap out of each other!"

"If the enemy leaves the two of us alone with each other long enough," Athena adds mirthfully, "They won't need to kill us. We'll do it for them."

The two young women collapse into laughter, embracing each other.

The Centurions have been watching all this from the sidelines, but missing their commanding and executive officers' hushed dialogue. They turn to each other, perplexed.

"I don't think I'll ever understand those two," Tomo tells his colleagues.

Anna agrees, "They're definitely very strange people."

"Total nutcases," Geoff adds.

Outside of Side 3, the black Sazabi MK-II appears suddenly to launch a lightning assault against a civilian passenger transport leaving Side 3 for Side 6. The 120 passengers aboard the transport are instantly killed by the single shot fired from the Sazabi. A team of six GM-IV mobile suits from the colony's Civil Defense Division is eliminated with three more shots.

Colonel Braniff Oskar's silent reign of terror continues. Now, it appears no one can enter or leave Side 3 without the threat of being shot out of the sky.

_Cislunar Daily Journal_ Editor-In-Chief Linda Ackerman is on local television at Zum City, where she is being interviewed by the mainstream media about the Federation's destructive assault on the CFM compound the previous evening.

Linda angrily tells her interviewer, "I think it's very clear that this attack was carried out not for security reasons, as the Federation's leaders would want you to think, but for political reasons. The notion that our headquarters housed deadly nerve toxins for use against the people of the city is utterly preposterous: pure fiction made up by the Federation to attempt to cover up their true motives! Our investigative reports and articles have been very candid and unflattering to the Federation, so they decided to silence us through terror tactics. But we refuse to be intimidated! Even though we've lost our headquarters at Zum City, we will continue…"

On another channel, Colonel Cairlay is deflecting questions from the media, "We would not have taken such extreme measures except for the fact that we have learned that the CFM was serving as a front for ISRLA terrorists. Their compound held G3 toxin canisters that our intelligence confirmed as being intended for use against the citizens of Side 3. In all good conscience, we of the Federal Forces could not allow that to happen to our citizens here at Side 3."

Later that day, Athena sits at her office desk, lost in thought. She's devising her next strategy in light of recent events.

Jolie comes into the office, "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, Jo, have a seat," Athena replies.

As soon as Jolie is seated, Athena gets to the point with her, "This rogue mobile suit pilot terrorizing the Side 3 Zone is the source of many of our problems. He's making us look incompetent by striking at will before we can do anything about it. We've got to shut him down."

"All right!" Jolie enthuses, pumping her fist into the air, "It's 'bout time we saw some action again! I'd love to nail this bastard! He shot down a shuttle full of people today!"

Athena nods, "He's a menace, and we need to deal with him. But we need to be careful: it's obvious that he's a highly skilled mobile suit pilot."

"I can take him," Jolie says confidently, "I took down the White Wolf, and the Blackbirds, and all those others, after all."

Athena rises, patting Jolie warmly on the shoulder, "You ever heard of Braniff Oskar, the 'One Strike Killer?'"

"Kind of," Jolie says, having heard something vaguely about him, "He was like the top Zeon ace of the One Year War, wasn't he? Didn't he shoot down the most enemies or something like that?"

Athena nods, "Each with a single shot. His efficiency rating is actually higher than the more well known aces, such as the White Wolf, the Red Comet, and the Federation's Captain Amuro."

Jolie ventures, "You think this guy is Oskar?"

Athena replies, "I'm pretty sure of it. If it is, we're going to have one hell of a fight on our hands."

"He really has never missed before…ever?" Jolie asks.

"Not a single shot," Athena confirms, "If he has, it's not a matter of record."

Jolie actually begins to feel worried. Even she can't claim to have never missed before.

The following day, the Centurion Team is deployed outside of Zum City in their mobile suits, using Minovsky particles to conceal their presence.

"There's a particularly large supply convoy coming in today," Athena explains to the rest of the Centurions via coded message, "My reasoning is that this bait will be too tempting for Oskar to pass up on."

The Centurions are more nervous than usual. They know of the reputation of their enemy, and each of them fears that it could all be over in one lightning instant.

Fifteen minutes later, the Centurion Team is shadowing the convoy as it approaches Side 3.

In the distance, a black Sazabi is establishing its mark on the convoy. No time to waste with the mobile suit escorts.

Oskar has the lead supply ship bracketed in his sight.

His finger tenses on the trigger, then relents.

2Lt. Jolie Minh's mobile suit emerges seemingly from nowhere to obstruct the path between Oskar's Sazabi and its target.

Oskar pulls back on the control stick. His Sazabi narrowly misses being stricken by the beam of the Centurion Gundam's rifle.

The Centurion Gundam's sudden appearance caught Oskar off-guard…something that Oskar has never previously experienced in his twenty years as a mobile suit ace pilot. But no matter: he will finish the enemy mobile suit in the next heartbeat.

But the Centurion Gundam is gone.

Wary now, Oskar takes his attention away from the convoy ships. A moment of silence to center himself.

The Centurion Gundam appears suddenly once again behind Oskar's Sazabi MK-II; Jolie fires, but Oskar is able to dodge her shot once again.

Oskar locks the Sazabi MK-II's beam rifle onto the Centurion Gundam. He is calm. He is centered. He is prepared to strike down his target, like so many thousands of times before.

This time, however, is different. Oskar is infamous for having never missed a target once in his entire career. To be shot at by Oskar is to be stricken by Oskar. There has never been an exception.

But today is different. As Oskar targets the Centurion Gundam, he feels an uncertainty. For the first time, ever, Oskar does not feel confident that his shot will strike the target.

_Something is different about this one,_ Oskar realizes, _If I fail to strike her down with the first shot, I won't get a second chance. She can kill me._ Somehow, Oskar is quite certain that the enemy pilot is a "she." He senses her powerful Newtype aura, more intense and overwhelming than his own.

The Centurion Gundam takes a third shot at the Sazabi MK-II. Oskar deflects the shot with the Sazabi's arm-mounted shield.

_Some other time, then,_ Oskar resolves, _When I'm ready for her._

Oskar vectors the Sazabi MK-II away. Jolie gives chase in the Centurion Gundam. The rest of the Centurion Team follows.

Braniff Oskar fires a barrage of blinder flares to cover his escape. The blinders illuminate local space with blinding light. The Centurion Team is forced to halt its pursuit.

"Damn!" Jolie slams her fist on the control console of the Centurion Gundam in frustration, "We lost him!"

"Yes," Athena concedes, "but we've given him something to think about, which will deter him until we can eliminate him. Let's get back to base."

The Centurion Team withdraws to Zum City.


	10. Chapter 10: INNOCENCE'S END

EPISODE 10: INNOCENCE'S END

Christmas Eve, U.C. 0098. For the moment, things are quiet at Side 3. No new attacks by the One Strike Killer have occurred during the past week, and while the backlash from 2Lt. Jolie Minh's attack on the CFM headquarters compound still simmers tensely, the situation is no longer quite at a boiling point.

Work on the colony's refurbishment has been suspended for two days so that the people of Side 3 can enjoy the holidays with their families. It's the best holiday that the people of the space colony have had in many, many years, thanks to the arrival of supply convoys that bring not only extra food, medicine, and clothing, but even holiday decorations and toys for children.

The Centurion Team also has Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off, and is gathered in the lounge of their barracks.

Jolie hands a small, gift-wrapped box to Athena, "Merry Christmas, 'Thena."

"Thank you," Athena says, accepting the box, "Want me to open it now?"

"Yeah," Jolie enthuses with a sweet grin.

Athena opens the box methodically and neatly, laying aside the wrapping paper. Within is a box that contains a gold pocketwatch with a chain.

"It's beautiful," Athena smiles, "I'll cherish it, Jolie."

"I got that in Shanghai back when were on Earth," Jolie tells Athena, "Cost me a few hundred credits too."

"You know," Athena says with a mischievous grin, "gold pocketwatches are traditionally gifts for people who are about to retire from their careers. Are you trying to tell me something, Jo?"

Jolie, unaware of the tradition, blushes in embarrassment, "Well, um. No, that's not what I meant. I mean…"

Smiling at her friend's discomfort, Athena produces a somewhat bigger gift-wrapped box, "I have something for you as well."

"Cool!" Jolie says, accepting the box from Athena and ripping the wrapping to shreds.

Jolie's eyes widen as she opens the box: it contains a high-caliber Walther hand pistol, similar to the sidearm that Athena always carries, but a newer, more advanced model.

"Wow," Jolie says, picking up the small, but deadly silver handgun, "You know, only you would give someone a gun for a Christmas gift."

Athena smiles, "This Walther hand pistol has greater range and accuracy than your standard issue Federal Forces sidearm, and packs a stronger punch too. If it ever comes down to it, it'll give you an edge in a life or death battle."

"Thanks, 'Thena," Jolie says, twirling the gun on her finger before holstering it at her side.

Nearby, the rest of the Centurion Team is drinking eggnog and singing Christmas carols. Athena and Jolie step over to join them.

Jolie plants a warm kiss on the cheeks of each of her Centurion Team squad mates. During the past year, the Centurions have become her surrogate family. After her real family was killed by Alexander Miguel, Jolie thought she would never belong to a family again. Athena changed all that, however, by taking her off the streets of Industria Colony and inducting her into the Centurion Team. Thanks to Athena, Jolie has a family to belong to again, and she couldn't be happier.

Athena smiles at her team. Like Jolie, Athena has developed a sense of kinship with the young men and women under her command. She has vowed never to let harm come to any of them, especially Jolie, whom Athena regards practically as her little sister.

"You know," Sgt. Tomo Higashi says, "As cool as you guys all are, I really do miss my folks and my kid sister back at Side 2."

Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said says sympathetically, "I understand what you mean, Tomo. I had hoped to spend some time with my fiancée during this winter. I promised her that we would be married as soon as my current tour of duty ends in about twenty-four months from now."

_Provided I can keep you alive another twenty-four months, Karim,_ Athena cannot help thinking to herself gravely.

So far, Athena has been fortunate: the Centurion Team has not lost a single member under her command. The team's original commanding officer, Captain Rick Tinne, was killed during the team's very first mission, but that was a casualty that Athena had been counting on…deliberately manipulated into place, in fact.

Athena sighs with regret. She reflects on how downright evil some of her past choices and actions have been. Maybe people were right about her Zabi Family heritage after all: the Zabis were all pathologically evil to the core.

A few months ago, Athena had explained to Jolie the need to be Machiavellian during these dark times. Athena's experiences in recent months have changed her greatly: her disastrous romance with Hathaway Noah, her unexpected reunion with her childhood caretaker and friend Dory Ischinda, and her often tempestuous friendship with Jolie.

"Hey, 'Thena!" a laughing Jolie calls out as she and the Centurions engage in a spontaneous game of Twister/wrestling, "Stop standing there frowning and come have some fun!"

Athena grins, and joins the happy pile of young soldiers. This is her family now, and she loves every one of them. That's all that matters now.

Elsewhere, a man who never celebrates any holiday is hard at work.

Colonel Braniff Oskar tinkers with his Sazabi MK-II with the single-mindedness of a machine. Working with supplemental parts provided to him by Anaheim Electronics by way of the Earth Federation Forces, Oskar upgrades every system of his mobile suit, preparing for his impending rematch against Jolie Minh's Centurion Gundam: the first opponent that Braniff Oskar has ever doubted he could shoot down with a single strike.

Oskar is not motivated by jealousy, ego, or similar considerations. He is of a singular mind and purpose: destroy the enemy with a single shot. Until he accomplishes this purpose or is destroyed in the process, he will pursue it…without fear, without hesitation, and without desire. His target being formidable, special preparations must be made. But the end result, Oskar knows, will be no different.

One shot. One death. One goal.

December 26, U.C. 0098

**How The Earth Federation Forces Play A Shell Game With Our Lives**

by

Linda Ackerman

Editor In Chief

_Consider yourself lucky if you are actually reading this. After all, you are still alive to read it, and I am still alive to have written it. I have even found a way to distribute it despite all that has happened in recent days and weeks. _

But make no mistake: your luck and mine is going to run out sooner rather and later. We are playing the Earth Federation Forces' shell game, and the chips are our lives.

The dealers in this particular game are General Manron Blackhead and Colonel Peter Cairlay, two blackjacks if there ever were any.

And like all dark princes, these two sent one of their pawns to do their dirty work.

My office is no more. The facility from where I once wrote and distributed these articles is a memory. I am fortunate that I have other resources that have enabled me to return to limited publication. I am also fortunate that my colleagues survived that night of fire and fury.

But as I said before, our luck is running out.

That's why I say that Spacenoids cannot continue to press their luck with the Earth Federation Government. The Spacenoid population must do as Zeon Daikun and Degin Zabi once urged them to do: seize control of their own destiny… 

Captain Athena Ibaz puts the newspaper down. She faces Linda Ackerman (Dory Ischinda) at a café in Zum City.

"And you say that _I'm_ the one playing with fire," Athena mutters in exasperation.

Dory replies, "We're sending a strong message to the Federation: we're not backing down, no matter how many mobile suits it sends against us."

"How are you able to keep publishing?" Athena asks, "Jolie wiped out your entire compound, including the printing facilities."

"We aren't fools, Minerva," Dory says, "The Zum City compound was just one of our bases. We have other locations from which we can do our work…all throughout Cislunar Space, and even on Earth."

"You're going about this the wrong way," Athena tells Dory, "You're jabbing a caged lion with a short stick, and even though it's a sick lion, it's still ferocious enough to kill you."

"Some of us aren't willing to stick our heads in the sand, Minerva," Dory responds, "Are you telling me that your way is working? Yes, the people of Side 3 have seen their daily lives get a little better this past month, and yes, it's because of your efforts. But let's not kid ourselves: you're only a captain in the Federal Forces and there's only so much you can do. Before long, your commanding officers are going to order you to do something terrible to the people here…just like they ordered Jolie Minh to destroy the CFM compound, except worse. What will you do then, Minerva?"

Athena says nothing. On some level, she realizes that Dory is probably right.

Having said what she wanted to say, Dory leaves behind money for the coffee she had, and prepares to go her way.

Before Dory leaves, however, she turns to Athena one more time and tells her, "Hathaway sends his love."

Athena turns to Dory, "So you know…?"

"Of course," Dory says, with the hint of a grin, "Don't forget who signs Hathaway's paychecks."

"How is he?" Athena asks meekly.

"A bit depressed when I last talked to him two days ago on Christmas Eve," Dory says, "He misses you terribly."

Athena sighs.

"Unfortunately, I can't tell you where he is," Dory continues, "You saved his life by reporting Mafty killed in action, but you could still implicate him if you were to find out his current location. In the ISR, we don't endanger our colleagues like that."

Athena nods understandingly, for once agreeing with Dory's decision.

Dory steps back over to Athena, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. When they aren't divided by politics, they are still friends, "When you were still a little girl, we on the Royal Staff often fretted about the day when you would grow up, and it would be time to find you a suitor that you would marry and with whom you would someday continue your family's bloodline. Little did we know it would come to this."

Athena smiles bitterly, "So are you still planning to marry me off to some Zeon nobleman?"

Dory laughs, "No. That's one part of your life in which I don't plan on telling you what to do."

"I kind of wish you would," Athena admits, "I sure as hell haven't been able to figure it out."

"Do you love Hathaway, Minerva?" Dory ventures.

"Jolie used to ask me that exact same question all the time," Athena says.

"Well…?" Dory presses.

Athena nods, "Yes. I've become sure of that much, at least."

"Then why haven't you acted on it?" Dory asks.

"It's not that simple," Athena says, "Like you suggested a minute ago: I'm an Earth Federation Forces officer. He's Mafty, the ISRLA's top intelligence agent. It's the Montagues and Capulets all over again."

"Even more reason you should drop this whole 'Athena Ibaz' charade and reclaim your real identity, Minerva," Dory resolves, becoming serious again.

"No," Athena replies, "Let's let Duchess Minerva remain 'dead.' I don't want any part of the Zabi name or legacy ever again."

It is Dory's turn to sigh, "I was hoping you'd reconsider. Farewell, Your Highness."

Dory leaves Athena to brood.

Athena runs a hand through her hair, feeling a migraine developing. She wonders if things will ever get simpler.

Later that day, Athena and Jolie are at a test firing range, practicing their shooting skills. Jolie is using the new Walther hand pistol that Athena gave her for Christmas, gaining familiarity with the sleek and powerful new weapon.

As during many previous shooting practices, Athena and Jolie turn training into a competition to see which of them has better aim. As has been the case many times before, they reach stalemate after stalemate after stalemate…neither one of them capable, it seems, of missing the bullseye.

As the practice session/contest ends, Jolie admires her new sidearm, "This new gun is great! Lots of power, really accurate, and hardly any recoil."

"Yes," Athena says, "It's a much better weapon than the standard Federal Forces issue sidearm. I abandoned mine and got the Walther not long after I graduated from the Academy. The last thing a soldier needs in battle is an unreliable weapon."

Changing the subject, Jolie says, "I've noticed you've been hanging out with that Linda Ackerman the past few days. What's up with that?"

"Just diplomacy," Athena says cryptically, "Trying to keep the CFM from launching any more diatribes against the Federation after that fireworks show you performed at their compound."

"Oh, c'mon!" Jolie says, growing visibly upset, "We already talked about that! If I'd known…!"

"You would have had to follow orders anyway," Athena finishes, "I'm not blaming you, Jolie. You did what you had to do, like any good soldier would. But there's no questioning that Cairlay and Blackhead are making some very foolish choices. They're lighting matches in a roomful of explosives. Sooner or later, it's going to blow up in all of our faces."

"Athena," Jolie says seriously, "We're Federal Forces officers. Is the Federation evil? Are we doing evil things for evil men?"

Athena places a reassuring hand on Jolie's shoulder, "Ever since human beings began fighting each other, philosophers have wrestled with the question of whether or not war itself is evil. I don't claim that I have a definitive answer to that question, Jolie, but war does bring out the worst in people."

Jolie blinks, "After I attacked the CFM building, I…I don't know, 'Thena…I just didn't feel like one of the good guys anymore."

Jolie looks so upset that Athena feels compelled to give her protégé a comforting hug, "Jolie, I know you. Of the people I've known in my life, you have one of the purest, most noble spirits. You did what was required of you as a soldier, and you did it without unnecessarily killing anyone. You don't need to feel ashamed."

Jolie seems to take comfort in Athena's encouragement, and perks up again, "It's almost New Year's," Jolie says, "It's been a whole year since we got together and became a team."

"I know," Athena says, "What a year it's been for both of us."

Jolie says, "When we first met, you didn't want to tell me anything about your past. Maybe because we didn't really know each other then. Are you gonna tell me now? We're best friends, 'Thena, but I barely know you, know what I mean?"

Athena tenses. She has been dreading this question. Thinking quickly, she tells Jolie this much, "I was born here at Side 3, but moved out to the Asteroid Belt not long afterward because of the war. My father was killed during the war, and my mother died of illness two years later. I was adopted by friends of my family. When I was ten, I moved down to Switzerland on Earth. I lived in Switzerland among the Alps until I joined the Federal Academy when I was fourteen. It was like _Heidi_ where I lived in Switzerland."

Jolie blinks in surprise, "You were born at Side 3? Wow. That means you're a Zeon. I never would have guessed."

"Does that mean you hate me now?" Athena teases.

"No," Jolie says, "Like I said before: I don't hate all Zeon people. They're mostly just people same as me. I just hate the Zeon leaders who've killed so many people…especially Alexander Miguel and the Zabis."

Athena's heart freezes for a moment.

Jolie continues, "I guess I can understand now why you're so nice to the people here at Side 3. This is like your home country, huh? So why did you join the Earth Federation Forces? I didn't think a citizen of Zeon would want to become a soldier in the Federal Forces."

Athena considers the question for a moment, "Maybe it was for redemption."

"Redemption?" Jolie asks, puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Athena smiles, putting her hands on Jolie's shoulders, "It's not important. Anyway, let's not dwell on the past. I'm more interested in focusing on the future. You mentioned the other day how you want to have children one day. Let's do what we need to so that you can raise them in a world where you don't have to worry about them being killed in war."

"Yes, ma'am," Jolie says.

Athena pats Jolie's shoulders. Athena had initially recruited Jolie to be her personal ace in the hole…her own personal superweapon to be leveraged against her enemies. At first, Athena viewed it as a purely exploitative relationship: she needed Jolie's talents to expedite the fulfillment of her goals. Athena did not anticipate, however, that she and Jolie would grow to become such close friends.

A part of Athena curses herself for becoming so emotionally involved…just as she had with Hathaway. Love…friendship…these things complicate matters.

But another part of Athena feels very fortunate. Friends such as Jolie and the Centurions have saved her from what she was becoming…a cold-blooded killer, like her ancestors had been.

Athena's friends have made her feel _human_…something she often did not feel growing up as heir to the Zabi legacy. As Duchess Minerva, Athena had spent her entire childhood surrounded by sycophants who wanted to exploit the power of her family name. She has had precious few people in her life she can trust…until now.

But even if she can trust those around her, can they trust her? She is, after all, withholding a momentous secret from them. And can she trust herself? Will she be as loyal to them as they have been to her?

More questions with no answers. The Thinker's Curse: the more one thinks, the more questions arise.

General Manron Blackhead reads the latest article by Linda Ackerman in the _Cislunar Free Media_. It takes him less than a minute of reading before he grows so livid that his eyes bulge demonically and he crumbles the newspaper in his hands.

"God damn them!" Blackhead roars, "What will it take to silence these Spacenoid bastards?!"

Cairlay tells the general, "Sir, our intelligence agents have located their new base of operations. Would you like us to move in?"

"In force!" Blackhead says, "Extreme prejudice!"

"Extreme…?" Cairlay says, not quite believing what he's hearing, "But, sir..."

"It's time to stop coddling those terrorists," Blackhead says, "We need to show them some blood, Cairlay!"

"Yes, sir," Cairlay replies, actually relishing the prospect, "Should we send in the Special Forces?"

"Military Police," Blackhead says, "When you get back to Side 7, we need to have a little talk about your Special Forces officers, Cairlay. I suspect half of them have ISRLA or Zeon sympathies."

Cairlay reddens at the insinuation, "No, sir."

"Carry out my orders right away, Colonel," Blackhead says darkly.

The communications video screen goes dark. Colonel Cairlay contacts the MP unit stationed in Zum City.

An hour later, the staff members of the _Cislunar Free Media_ are preparing for the evening editorial. They are planning for a multimedia blitz to expose the Federation's corruption and cruelty, to be available online, broadcast, and in print through their temporary facility in an abandoned warehouse in Zum City's light industrial zone. The loss of their main compound in downtown has crippled CFM operations, but has not completely killed it. Even with minimal, jerry-rigged equipment, the CFM continues to operate, albeit at only a fraction of its previous capacity.

As the staff workers scramble about conducing their business, two squads of heavily armed Earth Federation Forces Military Police, dressed in their distinctive dark blue uniforms, storm into the warehouse. Each military police trooper is armed with an assault rifle.

The sergeant leading the squads orders his men, "Take aim and fire at will! No prisoners!"

The military police troops open fire with their weapons against the defenseless journalists. Soon, the warehouse is filled with the screams of dying men and women, the air filled with the smoke of discharged weapons and spilled blood.

Forty-four lives, erased in a moment. Forty-four voices of outrage, silenced forever.

Colonel Cairlay comes into the smoke and blood-fouled room to survey the work. He lights a cigar in triumphant satisfaction at the scene of carnage before him.

The colonel places a call via comlink to General Blackhead, informing the general that his orders have been carried out.

Cairlay then gets an inspiration. He opens Captain Athena Ibaz's comlink frequency, "Captain Ibaz? This is Colonel Cairlay. I would like your and Lt. Minh's presence at a warehouse in the industrial zone of the city. There's something I'd like you both to see."

Captain Athena Ibaz and 2Lt. Jolie Minh are there twenty minutes later, both finding their senses and sanity assaulted by the most horrifically gruesome sight either of them has seen in their young lives.

The sight and smell of death are overwhelming.

The warehouse has the distinct stench characteristic of a slaughter house. Thick splotches of dark, drying blood cover a large expanse the concrete ground. Eyes full of anger, hate, fear, and confusion remain open, staring into an eternal nothingness.

They had been sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, and friends. Now, they are piles of unliving flesh, their body cavities and skulls now repositories of melted lead.

"A demonstration of the Federation's resolve against Zeonist terrorism," Colonel Cairlay says with an unmistakable tone of satisfaction in his voice, "This show of strength should service notice that the Earth Federation is not to be tarried with."

Jolie takes her sight away from the horrific scene before her to glare furiously at Cairlay. Jolie's family was murdered by a Zeon warlord; she has very little reason to feel sympathy for the people of Zeon, but the sight of the Federation's cruelty and inhumanity towards these people, whose only crime was to speak out against the Federation's injustice towards Spacenoids, infuriates her. Jolie musters every iota of willpower she has to stop herself from drawing her new sidearm and shooting the colonel dead with it.

Athena's reaction to the scene is, if anything, even stronger. Feeling sick to her stomach, Athena clasps a hand over her mouth, as much to suppress an urge to scream as an urge to vomit.

Cairlay smiles sinisterly at the reaction of the two junior officers. _Let this be a lesson to these two foolish girls as well. Those who defy the Federation will suffer a dire fate._

A minute later, Athena is vomiting outside the warehouse-turned-publishing house-turned slaughterhouse. Jolie supports Athena as her friend retches up the contents of her stomach.

Jolie looks at Athena with concern, "Are you all right?"

Jolie has always known Athena to be made of stern stuff. Jolie is a bit surprised at Athena's strong reaction, although she can hardly blame her commanding officer. What they have just witnessed is, indeed, sickening.

Athena coughs twice, spewing out the last of what her stomach can send up, then pants rapidly. Athena draws out her handkerchief to wipe the residue of her own vomit from the corner of her mouth.

"I'll be all right," Athena tells the concerned Jolie, "I just…"

"I know," Jolie says, looking dazed and a bit shellshocked, "That was just…sick. I can't believe the Federation did that."

"You asked me earlier if the Federation is evil," Athena says, beginning to catch her breath, "Now you have your answer, Jolie."

"What are we going to do about it, Athena?" Jolie asks imploringly.

"Do about it?" Athena says, repocketing her handkerchief and smirking bitterly, "I wish I knew."

Jolie says, "But 'Thena, we can't let Cairlay and his toadies get away with this! We have to tell somebody higher up about this!"

"The higher ups already know about this, Jolie," Athena tells her executive officer, "Cairlay wouldn't have dared to pull off something like this on his own without the express approval of the High Command. I have a pretty good idea of who gave Cairlay his orders."

"Who?" Jolie asks.

"General Blackhead," Athena replies.

"This isn't what I signed up in the Federal Forces for," Jolie says bitterly.

"Nor I," Athena agrees, "but we're currently not in a position where we can do much about it."

Jolie's eyes flash angrily, "I say we just go settle it with Cairlay and his creeps directly! We've got weapons! We've got mobile suits! We…"

"So do they," Athena warns Jolie, "many, many more than we do. Besides, they supply our weapons and equipment, remember? If we start an insurrection against the Federation, not only will we be killed, but we'll get everybody in this space colony killed as well."

Jolie angrily concedes that Athena is right. Even with the power of the Centurion Gundam, and even with her superlative fighting abilities, there is no way that Jolie, Athena, and the Centurions can stand against the collective might of the Earth Federation Forces. If fighting were to break out, the ones who would suffer would be the people of Side 3…people like those children in Zum City that Jolie has grown fond of.

"I hate Cairlay and Blackhead," Jolie says, tears of rage in her voice, "They're murdering scumbags."

Athena nods in agreement, placing a comforting hand on Jolie's shoulder, "We'll have our reckoning with them someday, Jolie. I swear: when the time is right, we'll make them pay for this."

Reluctantly, but dutifully, Athena and Jolie return to the warehouse of horrors. They were unable to save these people from the evil of the Federal Forces' leaders, but at the very least, they might be able to do something about giving these brave, but unfortunate people a decent burial.

Later, across town in her apartment, Dory Ischinda lies in bed, sobbing bitterly. She has heard the news about her CFM colleagues, and only a stroke of fortunate timing allowed her escape their fate. She had been scheduled to work at the interim office at the time the Federal MPs attacked. Only an extended emergency meeting with Dr. Daikun and Kai Shiden had prevented her from being one more victim of the massacre.

In light of recent events, Dr. Daikun has ordered all remaining ISR activities at Side 3 to move to the neutral colony of Side 6. Dr. Daikun does not wish to risk any more of her friends to such brutality.

Dory has one more errand to run before she leaves Side 3, however.

Late that night, long after the rest of the Centurion Team has gone to bed, Athena and Jolie attempt to drown out the memories of the horrors they have witnessed with a shared bottle of whiskey. It's not working. Despite four glasses of the strong stuff each, the two young women continue to be haunted by the sights and smells of their moments in Hell.

Bleary-eyed with alcohol and pent-up frustration, the two friends resign themselves to a long, sleepless night.

After a while, Jolie can't hold it in any longer. The horror-stricken teenager begins to cry.

"Oh, God! I can't get it out of my head, Athena!" Jolie sobs, "All those people…dead! Killed, just like that. Just like my mom, my dad, and my brother. I don't care if they were with ISRLA, it was just terrible!"

Athena takes Jolie's hands into her own reassuringly, saying gently, "Jolie, calm down."

"Calm down?!" Jolie explodes, drawing her sidearm, "After what we saw today, you want me to calm down?! I've got a mind to stick this gun down Cairlay's mouth and blow his guts out!"

Athena twists the gun out of Jolie's hand before the teenager can do anything foolish, "Knock it off! We can't win with this," Athena says, indicating the gun, "Pretty soon, word of this is going to spread through the space colonies! This is going to get much worse before it gets any better."

Athena knocks her whiskey glass to the ground angrily, the glass shattering into dozens of sharp pieces, "Damn those fools, Blackhead and Cairlay! They have no idea what they've triggered!"

The next morning, as Athena predicted, all of Side 3 (not just Zum City) is in an uproar. Despite the Federation's attempt at maintaining secrecy, there is simply no covering up this incident (thanks to Linda Ackerman's survival).

Federal Forces MPs strain to maintain a barricade against the rush of outraged Zum City citizens. Federal government and police vehicles are overturned and set on fire. Federal government facilities are vandalized. Anyone in uniform is assaulted.

Then comes the government and military response: batons are swung, rubber bullets are fired, and tear gas is deployed. The city is a burning turmoil once again.

Athena is calming a group of civilians in the city down, but is having limited success. Although the people of Zum City generally seem to be able to make the distinction between Athena, Jolie, and the Centurions from the likes of Colonel Cairlay, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the people to keep their faith…even in Athena.

"We want to know why the Federation is shooting at our people, Captain!" one man demands.

"Yeah! You Feddies are all scum!" another adds.

"When will this nightmare be over?" a woman sobs.

"My daughter was killed…!" another woman complains.

An old woman approaches Athena and tugs on the elbow of her uniform jacket imploringly. It is Mrs. Nakamura.

"Captain," the old woman says, "my eldest grandson Kevin has been missing since last night. He was very upset by the news of what happened to those journalists, and went out saying he wanted to talk to some friends about it. He's been gone all night and hasn't come back."

Athena puts a comforting hand on Mrs. Nakamura's shoulder, "Don't worry, ma'am. I'll find him. Any idea where he might be?"

Mrs. Nakamura shakes her head, "I believe his friends live a kilometer or two north of here. But I don't know."

"I'll be back soon, with Kevin," Athena promises, hopping into her land rover and heading in the direction indicated by the very worried Mrs. Nakamura.

Just a few minutes later, Athena is in an industrial zone of Zum City, not very far from the site of the CFM slaughter. It is an area that has largely been abandoned, and bears great resemblance to the Industria Colony where Jolie spent her early adolescence.

"Kevin Nakamura!" Athena calls out, "Kevin? This is Captain Ibaz of the Centurion Team! Your grandmother is looking for you!"

There is no response to Athena's calls, only the fading echo of her voice in the distance.

Athena can hear the sound of angry crowds and tiny explosions several kilometers away back in the city center.

"Kevin!" Athena calls out again.

The Centurion Team Leader is suddenly aware she is not alone.

A dozen young men, most of whom are around Jolie's age, emerge from various hiding places in the ruins of old industrial buildings. Most of the young men carry simple weapons: pocket knives, baseball bats, broken bottles, sharp work tools, etc. They form a menacing circle around Athena.

A tall, powerfully built young man whom Athena recognizes as Kevin Nakamura is the last to emerge. He carries with him an especially long, sharp, wicked-looking knife.

"Well, if it isn't Captain Ibaz," Kevin smirks, "Very nice of you to come looking for me, Captain."

"Kevin," Athena says, "Come back with me. Your grandmother is worried about you."

"I'm worried about her too," Kevin says, "And I'm worried about my little brother, my little sister, my mom and dad, and all my friends here. With killers like you around, Captain, how can I not be worried?"

The crowd of angry and armed youths moves in on Athena.

Kevin points at Athena, "You're a murderer, babe! Sooner or later, you're going to kill all of us, just like you did those reporters with the CFM. Well, we're not going to just sit around waiting for you and your fellow feddies to kill us off like animals. Get her, boys!"

The boys rush Athena, their weapons raised.

For a moment, Athena considers the sidearm holstered at her side. But no, she can't shoot at civilians…especially not after what happened the previous day. She's come to know and like the people of this part of Zum City well, and she doesn't want to harm any of them or their children. Moreover, more acts of lethal violence against civilians by Federal Forces officer could only tip the situation closer to full-scale civil war.

One of the boys takes a wild swing at Athena with his heavy baseball bat. Athena dodges the swing, grabs the bat, and pulls it out of the boy's grasp. She gives the boy a single thump to the chest that sends him rolling on the pavement, stunned but not seriously wounded.

Athena brings up the baseball bat to block another boy's slash with a carving knife. Lashing out with her fist, Athena connects with the boy's nose, sending him sprawling back and dropping his weapon.

Athena uses the length of the baseball bat to push down three more boys charging at her with a broken glass bottle, a length of iron pipe, and a crowbar.

A large young man, standing perhaps 200 centimeters tall and weighing 130 kilograms, grabs the baseball bat out of Athena's hands. He attempts to bring this down upon Athena's head, but before he can, Athena kicks him in the abdomen, sending the boy doubling over.

The boy with the broken glass bottle attempts to smash Athena in the face with his weapon. In response, Athena takes off her officer's overcoat, wraps it around and over not only the bottle, but also the boy's head and arm, and disorients her attacker. Athena then punches the young man in the gut with her right fist, and finishes it with a knee to his groin.

Another boy swings a length of metal chain at Athena. Athena dodges the swing and chops the boy across the shoulder blade, not hard enough to break bone, but hard enough to send the boy away seething in pain.

The large young man, having recovered from Athena's kick, sneaks up behind Athena as she is dispatching of two young men attempting to attack her with a tire iron and an axe. The powerful young man grabs Athena from behind and locks her in a half-nelson, immobilizing her.

Athena struggles, using her boot to stamp the young man's feet and attempting to bite his arm to force him to let go. The young man finally releases Athena from his grip, only to throw her to the ground.

As she lies on the ground, Athena is kicked repeatedly and mercilessly by the boys, leaving her bruised on her arms, legs, and body. Despite being a well-trained Federal Forces officer, Athena's physiology is fundamentally fragile. Athena feels one particularly brutal kick to her side that she suspects has fractured a rib.

"Finish her!" Kevin orders his gang.

Athena, woozy from the beating she has taken, makes peace with her fate.

The boys raise their weapons.

A tiny, feminine hand moving with the speed of a cyclone suddenly strikes out at each of the boys. Despite the hand's lack of size, it strikes with a furious force that sends each of the one dozen young men falling back.

2Lt. Jolie Minh, black eyes ablaze with fury and long black hair whipping about her head, helps Athena to her feet.

Jolie turns angrily to the gang of young men that have injured her friend, "You thugs have hurt Athena! I'm gonna make you pay for that!"

"Another one," Kevin smirks, "It's a shame really. You two are so pretty. If we didn't have to waste you, we'd probably date you."

Once again, the boys attack. Jolie and Athena prepare to defend themselves.

Jolie dodges the attack of the boy wielding the axe, locking his arm in an unbreakable grip and forcing him to relinquish his weapon. Her follow up kick catches him in the jaw, knocking him down and out. Jolie next turns her attention to the boy with the chain, who attempts to wrap his length of metal around the diminutive Federal Forces officer. Jolie deftly slides away from the chain, grabs it from the boy's hand, and swings the chain around to hit the boy on the side of the head, rendering him unconscious.

With Jolie taking at least half of the heat off of her, Athena is faring better as well. A solid punch knocks out the knife-wielding boy. A well-placed kick takes another out of the fight. A timely judo throw takes down the boy armed with the metal pipe.

Six down, six to go.

The boy with the broken bottle and the boy with the crowbar attack Jolie in unison. She dodges both of their swings, steps back, then uses their own momentum against them to trip the boys and smash their heads together, knocking both boys out cold.

Athena punches in the mouth a boy armed with a tire iron, knocking out several of his teeth. She continues the assault with an elbow on the back of neck, knocking him down and out. Athena then dodges a near deadly attack on her head by a boy wielding a large metal hook. Athena dispatches this boy with a kick directly to the nose.

Jolie pokes her fingers into the eyes of a boy trying to bean her with a heavy steel hammer. The boy drops his weapon as he rubs his eyes in pain. Jolie knocks him out with a chop to the neck.

One boy left. The giant.

Roaring like an angry beast, the large boy, nearly twice Athena and Jolie's _combined_ weight, charges at the two young women.

With perfect timing borne of their training, Athena and Jolie kick the young man in the crotch simultaneously. The boy goes down, tears running from the corners of his eyes in pain.

Kevin, having seen Athena and Jolie take down his gang in just a matter of seconds, flees.

"Kevin!" Athena calls out, trying to catch him, but stopping when a sharp pain in her rib prevents her from running.

Athena coughs out some blood. Jolie runs over to her in alarm, "Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine," Athena says, blood still dripping from her lips, "But I promised Mrs. Nakamura…"

"We'll find Kevin again later," Jolie says, letting her friend lean on her, "First, I'm going to take you the medics. You're hurt."

Athena lets Jolie help her to the land rover. For once, she even lets Jolie drive. Why not? At this point, Athena wouldn't mind dying in a car crash very much.

Thirty minutes later, Athena is in the temporary medical clinic set up at the officer's barracks. The X-Rays bear some good news for Athena: contrary to her own earlier assessment, her ribs are not fractured. They are, however, seriously bruised. The medics recommend that Athena not move too rigorously for the next few days. Aside from her bruised ribs, Athena also has a half dozen other bruises on her arms, legs, and body.

Jolie steps over to her bandaged friend, surveying the damage, "Good thing Hathaway isn't here to see this. It would break his heart to see you in this condition."

"I told you…" Athena begins before a sharp pain in her side stops her from uttering anything more than, "Ow!"

Athena collects herself, letting the pain fade, then starts over, "Thanks for rescuing me. I probably would've been reduced to hamburger if you hadn't shown up."

"As soon as Mrs. Nakamura told me where you went," Jolie says, "I knew you were probably gonna be in trouble."

"I know," Athena says, "What was I thinking? I shouldn't have gone out there alone. That was stupid of me."

Jolie smiles, "Never thought I'd hear you say that."

Athena says with a bitter grin of her own, "I think I'm starting to lose it. Maybe that gold watch you gave me for Christmas wasn't premature after all."

Jolie takes a moment to admire her friend's half-naked form, so lithe and supple.

_Damn,_ Jolie thinks absently to herself for a moment, _Are her legs longer than mine? Well, duh: she's like fifteen centimeters taller than me. But she's stopped growing already! My legs might still get longer in the next year or two! Hah!_

Perhaps conscious that she's being surveyed by competitive eyes, Athena begins to slip gingerly back into her uniform, biting her lip and grimacing when an arm or leg motion sends a wave of pain shooting up her side.

Jolie helps Athena back into her uniform jacket, saying, "You should really go back to the barracks and lie down. You're in no shape to go back on duty."

"Haven't got a choice," Athena says, "This space colony is on the verge of exploding, figuratively speaking. We've got to get back the people's trust, somehow."

Jolie says sarcastically, "Yeah, and I hope Santa Clause brings my dead parents and brother back next Christmas."

Athena rises carefully, testing out what motions hurt, "There's someone I've got to find…"

Jolie says, "I've sent Geoff and Tomo to go look for Kevin Nakamura."

Athena shakes her head, "Not Kevin. Someone else…"

"Who?" Jolie asks.

Athena doesn't answer. She walks out of the clinic, off the base, back into the chaotic and violent streets.

Jolie, concerned about her best friend, decides to shadow Athena quietly…just in case.

Athena finds Dory where she expected she would…across the street from the ruins of the former CFM headquarters buildings. A security ring of Federal Forces MPs surround the remains of the compound, wary of looters or ISRLA members looking to reclaim whatever property they can.

Dory stares sadly at the remains of the office from which she and her colleagues had once done the work of informing Spacenoid's of the Earth Federation's predations.

Dory sighs deeply. She senses Athena's approach, but doesn't bother to greet her.

Athena breaks the ice, "Are you and the other survivors planning to leave Side 3?"

Dory replies, "Can you help us?"

Athena says, "My team and I can escort you out of Side 3, but not farther than that. The One Strike Killer is still out there. We haven't been able to bring him down yet."

Dory says, "He's not one of ours, Minerva. I'll tell you that much."

Athena nods, "I know. I'm pretty sure that Cairlay and Blackhead are behind him as well."

"Maybe now you can finally see the true face of the Federation, Minerva," Dory says.

Athena replies wearily, "Dory, I know the Federation is corrupt. I know how cruel and evil it can be. I also know that it's impossible to destroy or change it…from the outside. We know what happened twenty years ago when my grandfather, my father, and my uncles and aunt tried."

Dory looks down ruefully, acknowledging to herself for the first time that the Zabi Family she so loyally served had indeed brought a great disaster upon all of humanity, and understanding for the first time the feelings of guilt that Athena bears.

Dory finally says, "You'll do what you must in the way you must, and so will we. Maybe our goals aren't so different…only our methods."

"I'll help," Athena says, extending her hand to Dory, "in the way I believe I best can."

Dory takes Athena's hand, "We'll be depending on your protection, at least out of Side 3. Our people can take it from there."

"Where will you go?" Athena asks, then amends, "You don't need to answer that if…"

"To Side 6," Dory says, "Dr. Daikun has ordered all ISR operations in Side 3 shut down for now. We'll continue the struggle from Side 6, where the Federation has no authority, and where we have a strong support base."

"Good luck, then, Dory," Athena says to her oldest friend.

Dory replies, "You too, Minerva. Maybe someday, you'll come back to us. We'll welcome you when do."

Athena and Dory embrace warmly. Through all the bitterness and ideological divisions, they are friends after all. Athena will allow no one else she loves to die.

Ten minutes later, Dory is on her way back to her apartment to pack the last of her things in preparation for the ISR's departure to Side 6. The ISR will be leaving Side 3 in discreet waves. Dory, Kai Shiden, and Dr. Artasia Daikun will be on a shuttle departing Side 3 early the next morning.

A tiny figure suddenly steps out of the shadows and onto the street to confront Dory. It is 2Lt. Jolie Minh.

Dory recognizes her, "So it's you…the one who destroyed the compound. What do you want?"

Jolie says menacingly, "I want to know why you've been stalking 'Thena for the past month. There's something between you and 'Thena, and I know she won't tell me, so I'm asking you: what's going on?"

Dory smirks, and begins to try walking around Jolie, "I don't have time for this."

Jolie grabs hold of Dory's arm, stopping the journalist in her tracks, "You're going to tell me whether you like it or not!"

"Get your hands off me!" Dory demands, attempting to pull free of Jolie's grip.

Dory aims a fist at Jolie's face, but strikes nothing but air. Jolie grabs Dory's arm again and twists it around her back painfully.

Jolie puts her other hand on the back of Dory's neck, placing Dory in an agonizing hold.

"Tell me!" Jolie demands, "Who are you?! What do you want with Athena?! If you hurt 'Thena in any way, I swear to God I'll kill you!"

"'Athena,'" Dory says bitterly, "She's been telling you the same lie she's been living for years. She's got you living that lie with her!"

"What are you saying?!" Jolie demands, twisting Dory's arm harder.

Wincing in pain, Dory says, "You stupid, ignorant girl! Your friend…your commanding officer…the one you call 'Athena?' Let me tell you: she's nothing of the sort. The person you call 'Athena' is Her Majesty, _**Duchess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon."**_

Jolie's grip on Dory goes limp, then tightens again, "No! You're lying to me! That can't be true!"

"I served Her Majesty as Royal Chambermaid from the time she was born until she disappeared in U.C. 0089," Dory explains, "She took the name 'Athena Ibaz' and joined the Federal Forces!"

Jolie is livid, "You're a liar! I don't believe you!"

Dory says, "'Athena' was the Greek goddess of wisdom. Her Latin name was Minerva. Also, what do you get when you spell 'Ibaz' backwards?"

Jolie considers that…Ibaz…Z-a-b-i. Zabi. Jolie's heart sinks, and she feels sick to her stomach.

Jolie releases her grip on Dory, "It can't be. Athena…you can't be Minerva Zabi. You can't!"

Dory says, "Face the facts, kid. Minerva lied to you, like she lied to herself."

"You!" Jolie, angered by blind rage, attacks Dory. Jolie rains merciless blows upon Dory.

"Go ahead and kill me!" Dory screams, "You feddie monsters are all the same!"

"Shut up!" Jolie snarls, kicking Dory in the jaw.

Jolie sinks to her knees and begins sobbing, "Athena isn't Minerva Zabi. She can't be. She's not."

Dory spits a little blood that has collected in her mouth, then crawls over to the sobbing Jolie. She places her hands comfortingly on the heartbroken teenager's shoulders, "Jolie, you have to believe what I've told you. You have to accept that Minerva has lied to you."

"Go away," Jolie says through her sobs, "Just go away and leave me alone."

Dory leaves Jolie crying bitterly on the darkened street. Jolie feels like she wants to die.

Jolie has already lost her parents, her brother, and many of the people she loved in her childhood. Now, it appears, she has lost her best friend as well.

Jolie pounds the pavement of the street in helpless rage.

A half hour later, Jolie has her Datapad turned on, rifling through its encyclopedia of knowledge. Athena always wanted Jolie to learn as much as she could from its vast repository of knowledge, but Jolie could never be bothered to read dull historical information.

But now, there are things that Jolie simply must know.

Jolie confirms what Dory told her about the Greek goddess of wisdom being named "Athena," and that the same goddess was called "Minerva" by the ancient Romans.

Jolie also compares a photograph of Duchess Minerva Zabi of the Archduchy of Zeon, taken ten years ago when the little duchess was nine years old, with a recent photo of Athena that the two friends had taken together at one of those pay-photo booths.

There is no mistaking the resemblance. Everything Dory said is true. Athena is Minerva Zabi.

Jolie buries her face in her hands and begins sobbing again. Many painful emotions rush through her heart. Sadness and disappointment that the person she admires and trusts most has lied to her. Anger that her best friend would deceive her. And hatred for the Zabis who had killed so many.

Jolie pulls out her new sidearm, the Walther pistol that Athena gave her for Christmas.

She knows what she must do.

At around 00:00, Athena is at the space dock. 2Lt. Molly Duran, the mobile suit engineer newly assigned on a permanent basis to the Centurion Team, is about to end her shift for the night.

Molly spots Athena coming. _Uh-oh_, Molly thinks to herself, _So much for calling it a night. Looks like overtime._

"Captain Ibaz," Molly salutes, "What can I do for you, ma'am?"

Athena says, "Sorry to have to bother you with this so late, Molly, but I want all of the Centurion Team's mobile suits prepped for full combat deployment by 06:00 this morning."

Molly sighs internally, but says, "Yes, ma'am. Any special instructions, ma'am?"

Athena says, "I want you and your crew to first make sure that all systems on 2Lt. Minh's Centurion Gundam are functioning at optimal condition, especially the maneuvering thrusters and tracking systems. Also make sure that all points of articulation are fluid. Then, do the same for the rest of the team's mobile suits. My Cour De Leon will be last, and if you have to sacrifice time on my mobile suit to better service the rest of the team's, so be it, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Molly says.

"Thanks, Molly," Athena says, leaving the space dock.

After Athena leaves, Molly lets out a real sigh, then sends the bad news to her team on the military comlink, "This is Lt. Duran. Bad news, guys: Captain Ibaz wants us to have the C-Team's mobile suits all fully combat-prepped by 06:00. Guess we'll do late night bowling tomorrow night, maybe."

Sighing again, Molly sets off to work, starting with the Centurion Gundam.

At 00:44, Athena is back at the barracks. The Centurion Team members are asleep, but there will be time to inform them about the unplanned maneuver they would be having after reveille. Athena is glad, however, that Jolie is still awake: she needs to review the plan to guard the departing ISR leadership with her executive officer.

Athena finds Jolie sitting alone in their bedroom, knees drawn to her chest, face buried in her knees.

Athena groans internally, _She's having a teenage mood swing again. Well, I can't wait for her to snap out of it. Might as well go ahead and tell her._

"Jolie," Athena says, "We have an important mission later this morning: we're going to be…"

Athena never gets to complete her statement. Without warning, Jolie leaps off the bed and decks her with a punch that sends Athena immediately to the floor.

Jolie lifts Athena up roughly by the collar of the latter's uniform jacket, only to punch her again. She begins kicking Athena mercilessly, compounding the injuries that Athena had suffered earlier in the day at the hands of Kevin Nakamura's street gang.

"You!" Jolie growls, "You lied to me! Why didn't you tell me you were the Duchess of Zeon?!"

Athena throws up her arms to defend herself, but does not strike back. She knows it's futile: Athena's fighting skills, though excellent, are no match for Jolie's sheer talent, especially not now as the pretty teenager is in the midst of a berserk rage.

Moreover, knowing now why Jolie has turned on her, Athena doesn't have the heart to fight back. She feels that she deserves every blow that Jolie strikes upon her.

"How many people did your family kill, 'Your Highness?!" Jolie seethes, angry tears flowing from her eyes as she strikes Athena again and again, "How many kids like me became orphans in your name?! Tell me, dammit! TELL ME!"

Jolie finishes it with a blow to the back of Athena's neck. Athena feels her entire body going limp. She spits out a mouthful of blood.

Jolie pulls out her sidearm, the one that Athena gave her for Christmas, and presses the barrel of the gun against Athena's head, "You lying Zeon bitch! It's because of you that my parents and my brother…and all my friends at Quebec Colony are dead! I HATE YOU!!!"

The gun trembles in Jolie's hand. Her finger tightens around the trigger.

Athena rises to her knees, blood still leaking from her mouth. She feels a pain in her heart that she is uncertain is physical or emotional.

"You're right," Athena says quietly, "I'm a liar. I lied to you. I've been lying to myself. My family did commit great evil. And no matter what I do, I can't redeem the horror they unleashed upon so many."

Athena stares Jolie in the eye, and tells her, "I promised you once that we'd create a better world: one where people wouldn't have to die in war. I also promised you that I'd help you avenge your family. Here's your chance to do both: pull that trigger now and kill me. After I'm dead, the Zabi bloodline will be dead as well. There won't be any more Zabis to threaten peace and freedom in the world. You'll also get your revenge."

The pistol continues to shake in Jolie's hand. She can't bring herself to do it. Despite the feelings of anger and betrayal burning in her heart, Jolie just can't bring herself to shoot Athena.

"Do it!" Athena says, staring Jolie in the eye.

Jolie lets out an anguished cry and throws the pistol to the ground. The gun bounces off the tiled floor, but does not go off.

Jolie settles for one more hard punch on Athena's jaw, then runs away from the room, crying bitterly.

After a long, quiet minute, Athena picks up Jolie's sidearm and places it on one of the two desks in room. Athena sits at the desk for a moment and buries her face in her hands.

She begins to do something she has not done in ten years…that she thought she was no longer capable of doing.

Athena begins to cry. Tears run down her cheeks, and her chest heaves with sobs, aggravating the pain in her ribcage from the injuries she first sustained during the street fight against Kevin's gang and complicated by her beating at Jolie's hands.

Athena lets it all out: the accumulated stresses she has endured over the past few weeks. The discovery of the Federation's WMDs. Her star-crossed romance with Hathaway. The guilt Dory has been foisting on her. The failure of her quest to help the people of Side 3. And now…the loss of her best friend.

As Athena sobs, she reflects on how…well, _good_ it feels to finally let her emotions out. Frustrations and anxieties that have been welling inside her for a decade finally find their release.

Athena puts her head on the desk and continues sobbing. She realizes now what her problem has been all these many years – the underlying cause of all her choices and actions: she hates herself and everything she represents.

Athena wishes she could be held in the comfort of Hathaway's arms right now, but that thought merely compounds the pain she feels.

Having learned to cry again, Athena lets herself continue for some time. After ten years, she has some catching up to do.

An hour later, a red-eyed Athena finds Jolie's uniform folded neatly on a table in the barrack's lounge. Jolie is nowhere to be seen.

The message is clear. Jolie is gone.

By law, Athena, as Jolie's commanding officer, should declare Jolie AWOL and send the Military Police to arrest her to await court-martial. Athena doesn't have the heart to do that to her best friend, however. Athena knows she'll get reprimanded and perhaps even court-martialed herself for dereliction of duty, but she doesn't give a damn anymore. Jolie is her friend. That's all that matters.

Athena picks up Jolie's abandoned Earth Federation Forces uniform and holds it close to her chest. Athena knows she will miss her friend terribly.

_Godspeed, Jolie,_ Athena sends a thought to her friend, _Wherever you go, I hope you'll find happiness._

Jolie is sitting alone at a bench at the Zum City Spaceport. No shuttle flights out of Zum City will be available until morning, so she is resigned to spending the night at the spaceport terminal

Jolie is wearing civilian clothing: a t-shirt, denim skirt, and a leather jacket she had bought months ago, but had never had an opportunity to wear. She also carries with her backpack with her few, meager personal belongings.

Jolie figures she has enough money to live off of for about a year's time. She has no idea where she is going. Perhaps back to Industria…back to the life of pickpocketing and petty thievery she knew before she met Athena.

_Athena,_ Jolie reflects bitterly.

Jolie's heart is filled with contradictions. She hates Alexander Miguel, the Zeon warlord that slaughtered her family. She hates the Zabi Family and all that they represent. Even Miguel was but a pawn of the Zabi regime. It was the Zabis who instigated the One Year War and killed billions, creating an entire generation of orphans like Jolie.

And Athena.

Jolie begins to wonder: does she hate Athena, even knowing now that Athena is a descendent of that genocidal clan, the Zabis? Athena is as much a victim of her family's mad ambition as Jolie is. More importantly, Athena has seemingly lived her entire life wracked with guilt over the terrible things done by her family, and has dedicated her life towards attempting to repair, as best she can, all the horrible things the Zabis did.

Jolie lies down on the spaceport terminal bench. She closes her eyes and tries to sleep. She must think…think…think…dream…

At 05:00, Captain Athena Ibaz has the Centurion Team lined up at the spacedock…minus one. 2Lt. Jolie Minh does not appear for the roll call.

Athena's answer to her subordinates' questions about their executive officer's whereabouts is a cryptic,"2Lt. Minh is no longer with us. I can give you no further information at this time."

That doesn't exactly satisfy the Centurions, but they know better than to question their commanding officer. Athena will tell them in due time, they figure.

At the moment, however, the Centurion Leader is grim as she tells the team, "This morning, we have a very important and, I must say, extremely dangerous mission. The enemy mobile suit pilot that has been harassing traffic in and out of the Side 3 Zone in recent weeks has been identified as Colonel Braniff Oskar, the top Zeon mobile suit ace from the One Year War. Some of you might know him better by his nickname: the 'One Strike Killer.'"

The Centurions gasp. They all know of the legend of the One Strike Killer: the mobile suit pilot who has never missed an enemy target in his career.

Athena continues, "Intelligence believes that Oskar will attack a convoy of shuttles leaving the spaceport later this morning. Our mission is to prevent Oskar from attacking the convoy, and eliminate Oskar if we can."

There is much mumbling among the Centurions. They are among the best pilots in the Earth Federation Forces…the finest trained mobile suit pilots anywhere. But do they really stand a chance against the infamous One Strike Killer?

Maybe if Jolie, their White Phoenix, were here, but she isn't.

Athena senses the team's disquiet, and knows what she must do next, "If we do encounter the One Strike Killer, I want you all to retreat immediately upon my orders. I'll deal with him."

The Centurions begin to object. Although they each have their fears about going up against this infamous killer pilot, they aren't about to let their friend and commanding officer face him alone.

"Captain, with all due respect, ma'am," Cpl. Geoff Sutcliffe pipes up, "We're not gonna let you face Oskar alone."

"That's right," Cpl. Anna Horowitz says, a determined look on her face, "We're a team. You've always been so good to us, Athena. You've looked after us and cared for us and protected us, and we're not going to let you go to certain death!"

"Indeed ma'am," Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said adds, "We pledged to win or die together in battle. We demand the right to stand by you against Oskar."

Sgt. Tomo Higashi finishes, "We're in it all the way, ma'am!"

"Attention!" Athena demands.

"Ma'am!' the Centurions salute as one.

Athena shakes her head at her team, looking at them each severely, "All of you have always been excellent soldiers. You have always listened to my orders and carried them out to the letter, without fail. Why is it that now, at our most dire moment, you're all failing to observe the first rule of being a soldier: following orders without question?!"

"No, ma'am!" comes the reply from the Centurions.

"'No, ma'am,' what?" Athena asks.

"No ma'am, we will not disobey orders, ma'am!" the Centurions reply in unison.

"Excellent," Athena says, looking each of her subordinates deep in the eyes, some of which are watering, "Because I need all of you to fulfill your duty as soldiers of the Earth Federation Forces…whether or not I'm with you."

Athena softens her voice, "You've been like brothers and sisters to me. If this should be the last time we go into battle together, I want you all to know…I want you all to know that you're the best soldiers that any officer can ever hope to have under her command, and the best friends that any person can ever have."

Athena hugs each of her teammates warmly. Each of the Centurions is either in tears or fighting to hold tears back. They have an ominous feeling that they may never see their commanding officer again.

And they all think the same wistful thought, _If only Jolie were here. Where is Jolie? How could she abandon us at a time like this?_

Colonel Braniff Oskar has a ritual he engages in before every battle. It is a sacred procedure that Oskar has performed before every battle since his first sortie as a teenager nearly thirty years ago. There must be no exception, for his quest is divine, and must be accorded the solemn piety it requires.

Oskar has cleaned his entire body from head to foot, then dressed it in a fresh normalsuit. Normalsuits must never be recycled, as expensive as the practice is. A typical soldier might wear the same normalsuit for the entire course of a war, provided he survives long enough to participate in many battles. Oskar considers such a practice uncivilized. Once a normalsuit has been worn in the sacred ritual of killing, it cannot be worn again.

Oskar has fasted for the past twenty-four hours, taking neither food nor drink, not even a drop of water. The mind and body must be clear for the sacred ritual.

Oskar kneels before his mobile suit to pray. He will need God's favor, as he has always had in his many battles.

At the appointed hour, Oskar boards his mobile suit, the black Sazabi MK-II.

In the silence he has observed for two decades, Colonel Braniff Oskar, the One Strike Killer, launches his mecha from its abandoned spacedock base. His target: the ISRLA leadership's shuttle.

Dr. Artasia Som Daikun (Sayla Mass) straps on her seatbelt aboard a Side-6 bound passenger shuttle bearing over five hundred passengers, young, old, military civilian, men, women, alike.

Sharing a row with Artasia are Kai Shiden and Linda Ackerman (Dory Ischinda).

Sayla asks Dory, "Linda, were you able to secure Captain Ibaz's cooperation?"

Dory nods, "Yes, Dr. Daikun. Minerva promised me that her squad will escort us safely out of the Side 3 Zone."

"Our people will take over from there," Sayla says.

Kai Shiden pipes up, "I don't like it. We can't trust her. She's Zeon…and she's Federation. Hah…who would have ever thought we'd be enemies of both?"

"I think we can trust Minerva, Mr. Shiden," Dory tells the Director of ISR Intelligence, "I…I have faith in her."

"Faith," Kai says scornfully, "Now there's a commodity in short supply these days."

At precisely 07:04, the passenger shuttle bearing the leaders of the ISRLA takes off from the spaceport at Zum City.

From a window seat of the spaceport's café, Jolie watches the shuttle leave…unaware of whom is aboard.

At the military spacedock adjacent to the civilian spaceport, Captain Athena Ibaz issues an order to her squad mates, "Centurion Leader to all units: deploy now."

The Centurion Team's mobile suits launch forth from the spacedock…off to face their most dangerous enemy yet. One of the team's mobile suits, however, stands at the spacedock undeployed: 2Lt. Jolie Minh's Centurion Gundam. The eyes of the mobile suit of the White Phoenix are cold and dark as her squadmates' mobile suits launch forth to face their destiny.

Colonel Braniff Oskar sits meditating in the cockpit of his Sazabi MK-II. The moment has also come.

He sees the shuttle, circled in his mind's eye, circled in his heart. Its mass occupies the entire universe, even if it is but the tiniest electron on an atom. He cannot miss, any more than a fish in the ocean can miss the water it swims through.

Oskar holds his shot. An interloping beam lances towards him from behind the convoy.

Oskar dodges the shot with ease. More come forth. He would need to deal quickly with the interloper before he could target the shuttle.

_Can't let him get the initiative,_ Athena reminds herself, _not even for an instant._

Still, Athena knows that the best she can hope for is to stall Oskar long enough for the shuttle to be out of his striking range. She has no illusions about being able to escape the inevitable.

As soon as she fires the first warning shot. Athena sends the retreat order to the Centurion Team, "Fall back! Guard the shuttle!"

"But ma'am," one of the Centurions protests.

"We're not leaving you, Captain!" another adds.

"We're staying right here!" a third insists.

"Follow my orders, now!" Athena tells them.

Athena transforms the Cour De Leon to Waverider mode and jets away towards an unseen enemy.

Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said is the first to snap out of it, "You heard the Captain! We're soldiers: we must respect our commanding officer's authority and obey her orders!"

The Centurions reluctantly agree. Each offers a silent prayer that somehow, Athena will defy the odds once again and return to them alive.

But they are soldiers: the best trained and most efficient in the Earth Federation Forces. They will obey the directives of their commanding officer to the bitter end.

Regardless of who dies.

Jolie sits alone dejectedly at a window seat of the spaceport café...an untouched, rapidly cooling cup of tea in front of her.

Sleep has eluded Jolie all night. Her eyes are red from both the lack of sleep and the crying she spent most of the night doing.

Jolie is still uncertain of where she might go or what she might do. To Side 1, perhaps? Or Side 5? To Anman or Von Braun on the moon? To Earth even, perhaps? Maybe she could go down to Shanghai and see if she could stay with her friend Chieming Noah and Chieming's mom, Mirai.

An alarm sounds, and a message comes through the spaceport PA system: "Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please: the Federal Forces are engaged in combat with hostile forces that have attacked a shuttle that departed from Zum City Spaceport earlier this morning. For your safety, all flights in and out of Zum City Spaceport are cancelled and the spaceport will now be evacuated and shut down until the emergency is over. Please leave the spaceport in an orderly fashion."

Jolie knows that the Federal Forces unit in question must be the Centurion Team, and the "hostile forces" the team is engaging must be Braniff Oskar, the One Strike Killer.

Jolie thinks back to the many moments of warm camaraderie and happiness she has shared with her teammates on the Centurion Team during the past year…the happiest year of her life since the death of her parents and brother. Geoff, Anna, Tomo, Karim…and Athena. They have been her family for the past year, and she has felt their love for her.

_I can't abandon them,_ Jolie realizes, _They're my closest friends…the people I care about most. Especially Athena._

Jolie sprints out of the Zum City Spaceport as fast as her legs will take her, headed for the adjacent military spacedock where her Centurion Gundam is docked.

_Please God,_ Jolie prays, _Don't let me be too late to save them…not like my mom, my dad, and my brother. I can't lose __**my family**__ again!_

Within ten minutes, Jolie is normalsuited and aboard the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam. She seals her helmet and brings the mighty Federation mobile suit's systems online.

The Centurion Gundam steps onto the launch catapult. Countdown sequence for launch is initiated.

_Hang on, guys,_ Jolie thinks to her friends, _I'm coming!_

The light on the catapult turns green.

"2Lt. Jolie Minh, Centurion Gundam, now launching!" Jolie declares.

The Centurion Gundam tears out of the spaceport, headed to meet the challenge of the One Strike Killer.

Braniff Oskar dodges Athena's shots impassively…almost with boredom, if he were capable of such an emotion. The only reason he has not already reduced her to molten slag is because he is curious about her fighting style, and wants to study it for a few moments before consigning her to the inevitable.

_Not a bad warrior at all,_ Oskar concludes, _Quite formidable…maybe even as good as the Red Comet. Not in the class of the White Phoenix, however. It's a shame, really…_

Oskar targets the Cour De Leon in the brackets of his Sazabi MK-II's gunsight.

The Shot That Always Kills is unleashed.

There is an explosion of white light.

The Centurion Team's members gasp.

Aboard the space shuttle, Dory Ischinda gasps.

Across space at Side 6, Hathaway Noah gasps.

A harsh, glaring white light fills Captain Athena Ibaz's vision. It is far brighter than any light that has ever shined into her eyes, like the concentrated illumination of a million stars.

The brilliant light fades to darkness.

_So this is Hell,_ Athena considers.

But it is not Hell. It is space. The same space that Athena occupied an instant ago. She is still flesh and blood, and her Cour De Leon is somehow still intact.

Athena sees a telltale glint of sunlight reflected on shining metal to her left.

The Centurion Gundam soars past, its beam rifle aimed forward.

"Jolie!" Athena exults, her heart soaring.

"Athena!" Jolie's voice comes through the tactical net, "Are you all right?!"

Athena replies, "Thanks to you, yes! But pay attention to the fight, Jolie: it's the One Strike Killer!"

"Roger," Jolie replies, concentrating on the battle.

Athena allows herself a smile, then turns back to the battle at hand. Even Jolie will need some help against the One Strike Killer. The two friends' happy reunion can wait until they have survived this battle.

A proposition still, at this juncture, uncertain…because their enemy is the deadliest mobile suit pilot to have ever lived.

Aboard the cockpit of the black Sazabi MK-II, Colonel Braniff Oskar pauses for an instant in a state of shock. His shot was intercepted…something that has never before happened. Something that he could never have imagined would be possible.

Whatever the outcome of this battle, and no matter if he lives or dies, he will never again be the One Strike Killer.

_It's the White Phoenix,_ Oskar realizes, _What kind of a pilot is she to be able to intercept my strike? Is she a mere mortal, or is she something beyond that?_

Oskar rouses himself from these questions. He may no longer be the One Strike Killer, but he will not miss again. His focus is once again singular. One target. One strike. One kill.

One miss, but never again. Oskar can live with no longer being the One Strike Killer if he can henceforth become the One Miss Killer.

One concept that Jolie learned early in life is that in a fight, it is vital to seize the initiative and never relinquish it. The old adage of combat is true: he who hesitates is lost.

Jolie pours forth a torrent of firepower from her Centurion Gundam: beam rifle shots, Vulcan cannon rounds, backpack-mounted missiles…all of her mecha's weapon systems are brought to bear on Braniff Oskar's Sazabi MK-II.

For all the good it is doing…Oskar is not only the greatest shooter among mobile suit pilots, but he is an ethereal evader of enemy fire as well. Try as she might, Jolie cannot lock him down.

Unlike Braniff Oskar, whose greatest asset is the singularity of his focus, Jolie's mind is scattered. Her heart and her mind are in too many places at once. She cannot focus well enough to target Oskar and hold him into place.

Aboard the Cour De Leon, Athena recognizes Jolie's problem, _She can't keep this up for long. As soon as Jolie exposes a gap in her defenses, Oskar will nail her. I have to get her to focus._

Recalling how Jolie had successfully intercepted Oskar's shot a moment ago when Athena's life was imminently threatened, Athena knows just how she can accomplish this, although it involves a considerable risk.

For Jolie, however, Athena is willing to take that risk.

Athena removes a small object from a storage bin underneath her cockpit seat. She attaches this object securely to her normalsuit's belt clip.

Athena then directs the Cour De Leon in its Waverider configuration in a kamikaze charge towards Oskar's Sazabi.

_Oskar is just one,_ Athena considers, _but Jolie and I are two. It's a simple equation: two trump one._

Oskar takes his attention away from Jolie's Centurion Gundam for a moment to note the approach of Athena's Cour De Leon

_I must dispose of this meddlesome interloper now,_ Oskar resolves, _so that I may direct my full attention to the White Phoenix._

Oskar directs the Sazabi's beam rifle towards the approaching Cour De Leon.

One shot.

The Cour De Leon explodes into fiery wreckage.

"ATHENA!!!!" Jolie screams in horror.

The light of the explosion clears.

Jolie looks at Oskar's black Sazabi MK-II, an armored Grim Reaper, through tears that all but blind her vision. Her teeth clench in rage, and her hands tremble angrily on the control levers of the Centurion Gundam.

"YOU MONSTER!!! YOU KILLED ATHENA!!! YOU KILLED _MY SISTER_!!!" Jolie rages.

With an anguished scream, Jolie assaults the Sazabi like a bolt of unleashed lightning. Jolie's shots disable the Sazabi's arms and legs before even Oskar can react.

True to Athena's prediction, Jolie's mind is now centered and focused: she has but one goal now – destroy Braniff Oskar.

"I'm gonna send you straight to hell!" Jolie vows, her heart aching, her eyes flashing with the flame of her unleashed Newtype powers.

Braniff Oskar is amazed as he sees the image of a fiery white phoenix appear in space behind the Centurion Gundam for the briefest of moments. What kind of a being is this Gundam pilot?

His mobile suit disabled, Braniff Oskar opens the cockpit hatch and floats out of the mecha. His mecha may be crippled, but he hasn't lost the battle yet.

Oskar throws an object towards the Centurion Gundam's head/camera unit. The object, a bomb, magnetizes itself to the Gundam's armored head.

The bomb explodes, blowing the Federation mobile suit's head unit off.

In the Centurion Gundam's cockpit, all of Jolie's viewscreens and monitors go dark. The Centurion Gundam is "blind" and "deaf."

Not that the sensors and cameras would have availed Jolie much. With his mobile suit disabled, Oskar intends to settle this fight bodily, without mobile suits. Jolie decides it's just as well. She wants to see Oskar's face when she kills him.

Jolie unfastens the safety restraints of her cockpit seat, opens the cockpit hatch, and floats into space, looking for her quarry.

Jolie activates the mini rocket pack built into her normalsuit. She searches for her enemy.

The human eye is limited in what it can detect in the endless cosmos, but the scope of the human mind is much greater, if it is used to its fullest potential. Zeon Daikun once said that the human mind could touch Eternity itself if unrestricted by gravity.

Jolie's mind searches for the singularity of her enemy. She finds a void…an emptiness save for the presence of one.

But there is a second presence, one that seems familiar...

Jolie sees him at last. The glint of his weapon in the distance.

Jolie reaches to her belt for her sidearm, but her weapon is not there.

_Damn!_ Jolie realizes. She had left her sidearm with Athena after their last fight, and Jolie never had the chance to retrieve her weapon before joining the battle against Oskar.

Jolie is alone in space facing off against the One Strike Killer, and she is unarmed.

Jolie engages her rocket pack at maximum speed to put some distance between herself and Oskar, but Oskar follows suit.

_Can't outrun him,_ Jolie realizes, _Maybe I should try to close in on him and fight him hand-to-hand. I'd have the advantage there._

True, and indeed Jolie would, but there is simply too great a distance between herself and Oskar to make that idea feasible. His lethal shot would strike her dead before she could get even close to striking distance with her fists or her feet.

Oskar takes aim at Jolie, directly at the visor of her helmet, _This is the end of you, child._

Jolie knows that she is doomed. What would lie in the world beyond? Would she see her parents, her brother, and Athena again?

"Jolie!" Athena's voice comes through Jolie's helmet radio receiver.

Jolie has no time to even be surprised. She sees Athena, normalsuited and apparently unharmed, floating just a few meters away. Athena hurls a tiny metallic object in Jolie's direction.

Jolie catches the object. It is her sidearm, the Walter hand pistol that Athena had given her for Christmas.

With no time to think, Jolie acts instinctively, firing her pistol not at Braniff Oskar, but at the Centurion Gundam's nearby armored bulk.

A bullet leaves the muzzle of Oskar's handgun.

Another bullet, the one fired by Jolie, ricochets off the armor of the Centurion Gundam.

Jolie's bullet arcs towards Oskar's approaching bullet.

The two bullets collide. Jolie's bullet disappears into the cosmos.

Oskar's bullet is deflected in a trajectory that sends it through the center of Oskar's helmet, finally lodging itself in Oskar's cerebrum.

Oskar has time for one final word before he slips into Eternity, the only word his lips have uttered in over twenty years, "Unbelievable."

The One Strike Killer…strike that, the One Miss Killer, is dead.

To the end, he had only missed once.

Braniff Oskar, brutally efficient to the end, has claimed his last victim: himself.

Athena and Jolie float into the cockpit of the Centurion Gundam together. They seal the cockpit hatch, and pure oxygen and atmospheric pressure suitable for human survival soon flood the tiny space

Athena and Jolie doff their helmets. Jolie buries her head in Athena's chest and begins sobbing, "'THENA! Oh, Athena…I thought Oskar had killed you!"

Athena, also sobbing, embraces Jolie tightly, "I'm all right, Jolie. Thanks to you, I'm all right."

The two young women hold each other tightly for several long minutes, letting their relief and the bitterness that defined the past few days between them wash out in sobs. After they have composed themselves somewhat, Jolie asks, 'How were you able to…?"

Athena wipes away her tears and says with a smile, "I bailed out just seconds before Oskar fired the shot. I had a feeling you would need this."

Athena indicates the silver Walther hand pistol now in Jolie's belt holster.

"Oh, Athena," Jolie says with a grin, "You're always so smart. I would have been dead if you hadn't…"

Athena says, "We're a team. Together, we can beat any enemy…any odds. But…I don't know if you want to continue being with me as a team."

"Of course I do!" Jolie declares passionately, "I came back because…because I couldn't lose you, 'Thena. I couldn't lose my best friend…my _sister_."

Athena, moved to tears, holds Jolie closer, "I know. We'll always be best friends…sisters-at-arms, no matter what."

The Centurion Team shows up, having escorted the shuttle bearing the ISR leaders to safety.

Sgt. Karim Abdul Al-Said's voice comes through the Centurion Gundam's radio, "This is Centurion Three. Jolie? Are you all right? Where's Athena?"

"I'm all right," Jolie answers her teammate happily, "So's Athena. We're both OK and ready to go home."

Jolie and Athena can hear the smile in Karim's voice, "Roger that, ma'ams. Ready to escort the both of you back to base."

"Let's go home, Big Sis," Jolie smiles at Athena.

Athena nods, "Lead on, Little Sis."

The Centurion Team, intact but for one lost mobile suit, returns to Side 3.

December 31, U.C. 0098, 23:45.

Another year is about to end. It has been a long year for the members of the Centurion Team of the Earth Federation Special Forces.

Jolie finds Athena standing alone on an observational balcony on the roof of the Zeon Royal Palace, from which Athena's ancestors once addressed the people of the empire they ruled.

The two young Special Forces officers are back in uniform. Athena notes that with satisfaction.

"So you're certain you want to continue serving with me on the team?" Athena asks.

Jolie smiles, "Where else would I go? Like I said the other day: we're sisters, and I have to be around to watch your back."

Athena adds, "So you don't mind having a Zabi for a so-called 'sister,' eh?"

Jolie shakes her head, "Minerva Zabi isn't my 'sister,' but Athena Ibaz is. Minerva Zabi is dead. Athena Ibaz isn't."

Athena smiles, "Now you understand what I had to go through when I had to separate Mafty from Hathaway."

Jolie nods, fully realizing now the dilemma that Athena must have faced back in Shanghai after she realized that she had fallen in love with one of the enemy.

Jolie notices that Athena is wearing the gold pocketwatch she had given to Athena for Christmas, "That gold pocketwatch looks really nice on you with the uniform."

Athena grins, "Thank you. It does look very nice. You have good taste, Jolie."

Jolie returns the grin, "I guess I do. I chose you to be my best friend, after all."

The two friends embrace warmly. Now that they have overcome their bitter conflicts of the past few months and no longer withhold any secrets from each other, their friendship has grown stronger and more unbreakable than ever. Whatever crises the future may hold, Athena and Jolie know they can face them together.

On that subject, Jolie ventures, "What about the future, Athena? What's going to happen next?"

"It's funny that you mention it," Athena replies, "because one of the things that I called you up here to tell you is that we've been reassigned."

"Reassigned?" Jolie says, "Where? To do what?"

Athena says gravely, "General Noah has returned from the Asteroid Belt. The Neo Zeon are about to engage in full-scale civil war. Officially, that's none of the Federation's business, and we can't and shouldn't intervene, but the Security Council has unanimously decided that it would be a good idea for the Special Forces to go out there and monitor the situation…to prevent the conflict from spreading into Federation space if it comes to that. I'm inclined to agree."

Jolie nods in understanding, "That means we might get a chance to face… Alexander Miguel."

Athena replies, "Yes, the opportunity you've been waiting for might finally be coming, Jolie. When the time comes, you'll have my full support.

Jolie grasps Athena's hands in friendship, "Thanks, 'Thena. I know I can always count on you."

Athena rubs the back of Jolie's head fondly, "And I, you, **First** Lieutenant Minh."

Jolie replies, "Yeah, of course, and I…wait. Did you say _'First'_ Lieutenant?"

Athena smiles, "That's the other thing I needed to tell you. General Noah has been monitoring our work here at Side 3, and he's been quite pleased with the results. You and I have been promoted one grade, Jolie. From now on, you're going to need to address me as 'Major.'"

Major Athena Ibaz.

"Wow, cool!" Jolie enthuses, then salutes, "Major Ibaz, ma'am! 1Lt. Jolie Minh reporting, ma'am!"

"At ease, Lieutenant," Athena returns the salute, proud of the excellent soldier Jolie has become.

Jolie asks, "So when are we leaving Side 3?"

Athena replies, "Tomorrow. We'll be stopping at Side 7 for a month to prepare for our mission in the Asteroid Belt, which will likely take us away from Cislunar Space for at least six months, if indeed not longer. We're being assigned to the new space battleship _Amuro Ray_, commanded by Captain Beecher Olech. We're also adding five additional new members to the Centurion Team."

"Five new members?" Jolie says, "Whoa…that doubles our team's membership."

Athena nods, "Yes. I've heard that one of the new pilots is a Newtype like you and me, Jolie. He'll be assigned to our team with a second Centurion Gundam that Anaheim Electronics has just rolled out. He'll be under your direct command."

"He?" Jolie asks, curious, "Under my direct command? You mean I'm getting my own junior executive officer?"

"Be nice to him," Athena smiles, "Don't scare him away."

"I hope he's cute," Jolie says wistfully.

A few minutes later, Athena and Jolie are in downtown Zum City, ringing in the New Year with the friends they made among the citizens of the city. The people of Zum City have learned that the Centurions and the other Special Forces units have been reassigned, and they will miss their friends and benefactors.

"We're going to miss you so much, Major Ibaz and Lieutenant Minh," Mrs. Nakamura says, "Ever since you and your team arrived, life has become much better for us. We're very grateful."

Athena smiles at the old woman, "We'll miss all of you too. You don't have to worry about the future, though. General Noah has assigned another Special Forces unit to help you in the restoration of Side 3. They'll follow the same guidelines we did and provide you as much assistance as possible."

Kevin Nakamura sheepishly approaches Athena, "Major Ibaz…I'm so sorry about the other day. My friends and I were just mad at the Federation and we lashed out at the nearest target in a Federal Forces uniform. We all know you aren't like those thugs."

"Don't worry about it, Kevin," Athena says, "The Federal Forces do have many problems, and I promise you I'll do my best to change things."

Fireworks, of a peaceful variety, ring in the New Year at Side 3. Although another long, bitter year has passed, the dream of peace in the future lives.

EPILOGUE:

A handsome young man, scarcely seventeen years old, arrives at Garrison Noah. He is dressed in an Earth Federation Forces cadet's uniform and carries with him a tiny valise.

The young man, dark-haired, dark-eyed, and gentle-natured, politely asks a Federal Forces MP, "Um, excuse me. I'm new here. Could you please tell me the way to the Centurion Team's headquarters?"

"Who are you?" the MP demands.

"I'm Chief Warrant Officer Jonah Michaels, sir," the handsome young man replies.

_**This concludes PRELUDE 0099, Part I of MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE SECOND CENTURY. My thanks to all of you who have read and enjoyed the story thus far**_

_**The adventures of Maj. Athena Ibaz, 1Lt. Jolie Minh, and Chief Warrant Officer Jonah Michaels (Miguel) will continue in Part II, MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE SECOND CENTURY. **_

Coming soon!


End file.
